Three Banks to Open Islamic Units Soon
KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI


Wednesday, 20 May 2009 | 7:38 AM

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Three national banks are in the process of opening sharia units to respond to growing demand for sharia banking services. "Sharia banks have increasingly become attractive particularly during the current financial crisis that prompts a number of conventional banks to open sharia units. Three more banks are now in the process of opening sharia units," assistant to the coordinating minister for economic affairs Muhammad Ikhsan said at a seminar here on Tuesday.

The three banks are Bank Central Asia (BCA), Bank Panin and Bank Victoria. The sharia banking proved resistant to the onslaught of the global financial crisis, he said adding the national sharia banking had grown well in the past few years.

Data from the Office of the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs show the country now has five sharia commercial banks, 27 sharia units and 131 sharia financing units. In total, the country’s banks now have 953 sharia branches and 1,470 sharia service units.

Ikhsan said while the economy was slowing down, the sharia banking industry’s assets rose to Rp51.6 trillion in March 2009 from Rp 49.5 trillion in December 2008.