GROWTH prospects for Islamic banking will remain strong in South and Southeast Asia (SEA) over the long term with demand expected to be driven by young, growing populations as well as government efforts to develop the sector, says Moody’s Investors Service.
The region, which includes key Muslim-majority markets like Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan and Bangladesh, is deemed one of the world’s brightest spots for Islamic banking growth.
According to Moody’s analyst Tengfu Li, the driving forces for growth in the region far outweigh the challenges.
“I think South and SEA is a bright spot in the sense that its population is still big and growing compared with many other countries where there seems to be a downward trajectory,” he tells The Edge in an interview.