on the basic principles. However, individual banks differ in their application. These differences are due to several reasons including the laws of the country, objectives of the different banks, individual bank s circumstances and experiences, the need to interact with other interest-based banks, etc. In the following paragraphs, we will describe the salient features common to all banks.
Deposits from savers are an important source of financial strength for the Islamic banks. They use it to increase their capacity for financing operations and thereby increase profit for the shareholders. Islamic Banks raise funds generally based on Amanah or Wadiah arrangements, on Mudarabah and on Wakalah for Fund Management. There are two main bases of mobilization of deposits by Islamic banks that are Current account deposits and Savings deposits. Banks may also get permanent or redeemable equity capital through investment deposits that practically take the form of a running partnership between the depositors. Depositors in Islamic finance can be compared with investors/shareholders in companies, who earn dividends when the investment makes a profit or lose part of their capital if the investment posts a loss. The contractual agreement between depositors and Islamic banks does not pre-determine any rates of return, it only sets the ratio according to which profits and losses are distributed between the parties to the deposit contract. In Islamic banks, Current Account deposits are based on the principle of Amanah/Wadiah or that of Qard. In the first type, interest-free deposits are held by the banks either in trust (Amanah), or in safe-keeping (Wadiah). Under Amanah arrangement, the Islamic bank treats the funds as a trust and cannot use these funds for its operations; it does not guarantee the refund of the deposit in case of any damage or loss to the Amanah resulting from circumstances beyond its control. In Wadiah, the bank is deemed as a keeper and trustee of funds and has the depositors permission to use the funds for its operations in a Shari'ah compliant manner. Deposits under Wadiah take the form of loans from depositors to Islamic banks and the bank guarantees refund of the entire amount of the deposit. While these deposits can be withdrawn at any time, the depositors have no right to any return/profit on such deposits. However, depositors, at the bank's discretion, may be rewarded with a Hibah provided such gifts do not become a custom or a permanent practice. In the second type, the client gives the bank authority to use current accounts funds to invest in its operations, in that case, the deposit amount is considered as a non-interest loan by the depositor to the bank. The bank has the obligation of to return the credit balance upon demand clients wh...
