AUSTRALIA, Brisbane (13 July 2022) – Australia’s IBA Group made history last week (6 July 2022) after receiving a restricted banking license from the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA), making it the first Islamic deposit-taking bank down under.
The Group is now transitioning to be the Islamic Bank of Australia and will offer retail products such as everyday account, term deposits and home financing products to a small number of customers as soon as 2023, said Dean Gillespie, IBA Group’s CEO said in an announcement.
APRA’s Restricted ADI or Authorised Deposit-Taking Institution license is to allow institutions to begin limited operations while still developing the full range of resources and capabilities necessary to meet the prudential framework.
Gillespie said the restricted status enables it to build and test its systems and processes before launching as a fully unrestricted bank. It is also subject to certain restrictions such as a cap on the total amount of deposits it can hold.
“With the number of Muslims in Australia growing by more than 6% every year, we are very excited to be bringing this new type of banking to the Australian community,” he added.
Islamic financial and investment products in Australia are currently mostly offered by non-bank outfits such as co-operatives.-/-www.halaluniverse.net
