MANAMA, 13 August 2004 — The Islamic Bank of Britain (IBB) is to launch a public offering for shares worth 40 million pounds ($73 million), raising the capital of the country’s only Islamic bank to 54 million pounds, its president said in an interview published here yesterday.
IBB which was granted formal approval to operate by Britain’s Financial Services Authority on Monday is due to offer the sale of 160 million shares worth 40 million pounds, Abdul Rahman Abdul Malik told the Akhbar Al-Khaleej daily in Bahrain.
“The move is meant to help the bank implement its strategy of expansion across a number of countries in the European Union,” said Abdul Malik.
IBB which is due to open the doors of its first branch next month in London, is the first bank in Europe to specifically address the needs of Muslims, of whom there are 1.8 million in Britain alone.
Around 150 Islamic financial institutions operate in 40 countries, but their unconventional financing arrangements make them complicated to set up in the West.
Economists estimate that the Islamic finance market worldwide is worth an estimated $200 billion and is growing at 15 percent a year.
