DUBAI: Islamic banks have attracted more assets than conventional banks in 2009 due to a more conservative approach to risk, according to a survey from The Banker Magazine and a unit of HSBC. The survey found assets held by Islamic banks or Shariah-banking arms of conventional banks rose 29 percent this year to $822 billion. A similar survey by The Banker on “Top 1,000 World Bank Rankings” in July found annual asset growth at conventional banks of 6.8 percent. While Iranian banks accounted for about 36 percent of total assets, Gulf banks, led by Al-Rahji Bank of Saudi Arabia, are making their mark in the top 10 Islamic banks by assets. The Gulf states account for 43 percent or $353 billion of the total global aggregate. Despite the growth, the Shariah-compliant aggregate asset total is less than 1 percent of the Top 1,000 World Banks aggregate asset total.
