This is an in-depth presentation of how the world of finance works in the Muslim world, how it was created, and how it can carry an ethical message.
Islamonomics is a mine of information on an often forgotten, but very important, aspect of Islam: its financial sector and how it is closely related to the practice of the religion itself.
As the author rightly points out from the beginning, all the great monotheistic religions have somehow shaped the world of finance and trade we have today. Protestantism is traditionally linked to the very creation of capitalism, Catholicism has always had a very difficult relationship with money, but Islam seems to be somewhere in the middle on that matter: favouring capitalism and private property while also trying to keep money matters practical but moral, so that it can benefit society has a whole. That position has not always been easy and sometimes frankly at odds with western financial habits (that are often wrongly seen as free of religious bias), but it is a fascinating topic that we really don’t know much about.
The book develops over five chapters. The first one on the origins of Islamic finance is somehow uneven and less furnished with details, but the book really picks up from chapter two with a great overview of Pax Islamica, or how the Muslim world created a peaceful trading civilisation that became the stuff of legend and greatly influenced European development during the Middle Ages. The next chapters turn to the modern world and how Islamic finance fits into today’s markets, and where it meets with difficulties when trying to apply moral codes to a mostly secular western financial sector. The author shines a light on a lot of unknown terminology and helps us understand all the intricacies of the system in all the many different regions of the globe where Islam is the dominant religion, and where it is not. The last chapter brings important conclusions and warnings, especially in the light of recent Islamophobia waves, but also concerning the development of Islamic fundamentalism or populism that could ruin everything positive that Islam could bring to a more stable global financial future.
If, like me, you want to know more on why Islamic banks were almost not touched by the 2008 financial crisis, and if you are tired of the endless negative and superficial views on Islam in our western media, you will find this book engaging and important. I was especially touched by the author’s dedication at the start of the volume, To: Greater Understanding. Islam is not the simple monolith we are too often being presented with. And this book is one of the many steps we must take towards each other, to work on a better future for all.
Islamonomics: Islamic Finance, Trade and the Global Muslim Market by Akhtar Ismail Mohammed
Garnet Publishing, 2018
376 pages
Bookish Felix 