Junaid Bhatti - Islamic accounts still breath as the acclaim crisis deepens

Halal Banking Revolution goes from backbone to strengthStore this angel in big sizeThe endure ages has apparent a added abasement in the UK economy, with a deepening recession, cyberbanking bail-outs and big-name retailers traveling bust. However, one area of the bazaar still breath is Islamic Finance which is now both cheaper and added accessible. Most recently, alburaq, the UK’s a lot of avant-garde Islamic “mortgage” provider, has responded to interest-rate cuts by convalescent its ambit of Shari'ah-compliant Home Purchase Plans.

“Our new artefact ambit agency our new barter now accept articles priced from the agnate of 5.49% on their home finance,” explains Keith Leach, Head of alburaq. He continues: “The new year could accompany even lower ante for our customers. If ante abide to abatement as predicted, from March 09 abounding of our barter could be paying a amount agnate to 4.5% or less.

In accession to the convalescent prices, there are affluence of added advantages for those allotment alburaq’s Islamic alternative. Recently, banks accept been criticised for capricious margins; arty collar ante and abbreviation the ambit of mortgage articles they offer.

“Collar rates” accept fabricated the account afresh as abounding mortgage holders accept apparent to their amount that their mortgage payments will not abatement inline with the accepted bead in rates.

alburaq works actual differently, as Leach explains: “When applying for a mortgage, the accessible would be accurate to abstraction anxiously what allowance will be applied, for how continued it is affirmed and whether there is a ‘collar’ rate. One of the appropriate appearance of our articles is that we fix our margins so these are acutely accepted from the alpha and we don’t accept a ‘collar’ on our rates. In addition, we don’t amalgamation our barter for if we action incentives, like fees assisted or cashback offers. We aswell acquiesce absolute overpayments, which isn’t consistently accessible with added Islamic or accepted mortgages.”

Leach continues: “Unlike abounding of the UK banks, we abide to action a abounding ambit of articles and we are still alms buy-to-let accounts – which has about abolished from the accepted market.”

Full data and agreement for alburaq’s Shari'ah-compliant articles are accessible by visiting www.alburaq.co.uk or by calling (freephone) 0800 587 88 66.

Notes to editors:

Interviews with alburaq are accessible on request. The aggregation should consistently be referred to as “alburaq” – after any capitalisation.

About alburaq

alburaq is the UK’s a lot of avant-garde provider of Shari'ah-compliant Islamic Home Finance, and has launched a advanced ambit of articles for the Halaal Mortgage market.

Alburaq is a casting name acceptance to ABC International Bank plc (a accessory of the Arab Banking Corporation), a above Middle-Eastern cyberbanking accumulation in which government agencies of Kuwait, Abu Dhabi and Libya accept cogent share-holdings. ABC was founded in 1980, and is headquartered in Manama, Bahrain. The Group has a absolute all-embracing arrangement including offices in Paris, Milan, Frankfurt, London and of advance the Arab world. ABC Group is one of the better banks in the Arab world, with assets totalling about US$33 Billion (December 2007).

Islamic cyberbanking is a faith-based arrangement of banking management, which derives its attempt from the Shari'ah – Islamic belief acquired from three sources:

•The Holy Qur’an
•The Hadith (sayings of the Prophet Muhammad) and
•The Sunnah (practices and traditions of the Prophet Muhammad)

For Muslims, giving or accepting absorption (known as “Riba” in Arabic), is carefully forbidden. All of alburaq’s articles are chargeless of from Riba, and accomplish in accordance with Shari'ah principles. Prior to launch, all alburaq articles are advised by a Shari'ah Supervisory Committee (SSC), composed of admired Islamic scholars. Products are alone launched already their anatomy and associated affairs accept been accustomed by the SSC.

Name: Ballencrieff House
Press Contact: Junaid Bhatti
Address: Holborn, London, WC1N 3XX, United Kingdom
Telephone: +44 7980 586 243
Email: junaid@ballencrieff.net