With a full scope of financial services, ranging from banking and capital markets to insurance and microfinance, Islamic finance has now become the most prominent form of faith-based finance in the world. After a period of double digit growth, the global assets of Islamic finance reached USD 2 trillion in 2015. Today more than 300 institutions are engaged in Islamic finance across the world. Despite this success, the field remains poorly understood.

Confusion can arise from media condemnation of Islamic extremism and, at the same time, praise for Islamic finance even if both claim allegiance to the same religion. Compounding this confusion is the academic narrative that treats finance as a purely secular subject that has little to do with the ethos and rules of a religion. The complex terminologies, which are mostly rooted in Islam's legal injunctions and historical practices, can render the field even more incomprehensible. This Very Short Introduction demystifies Islamic finance by shedding light on its core principles and practices. Adeel Malik and Usman Hayat cover the main debates surrounding Islamic finance's performance and potential, comparing and contrasting Islamic financial instruments with those of conventional finance, and building connections between Islamic finance and other ethical traditions in finance.

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