Four decades ago, it was a strange thought, but now it has emerged as a wonderful reality. I am referring to Islamic finance.

Indeed, it is a newly born but very fast growing industry in comparison to its counterparts. Islamic banking does not have a history spread over centuries, but its core principles were entrenched in seventh century AD. In fact, its roots are as deep as the roots of humankind itself, because Islamic banking is based on divine values—the values of justice and fairness that the God Almighty has ordained no sooner than he created man.

Islamic finance has become a vital and growing reality and is based on divine guidance, which has no room for injustice, discrimination, nontransparency, and greed among human beings; it is fully in synch with the laws of nature.

The journey of Islamic finance is quite fascinating, and is indeed very beneficial as it is about applying a viable alternative to the conventional banking and finance industry, which is fast losing trust due to successive crises that are forcing people to write off their lending to conventional financial institutions.

Throughout this book, you will see the shining present and promising future of Islamic finance all over the world. Although there are regulatory issues (which were raised by some of the authors), political and economic challenges (as also highlighted by the respected authors), and lack of awareness and misconceptions by the general public, the future is bright and the opportunities outweigh the challenges as gathered by almost all of the authors.

On one hand, Michael T. Skully discusses in detail the potential of the Islamic finance industry in Australia, which has the fourth-largest fund management industry in the world and has recently started to offer Islamic products. On the other hand, Hatim El-Tahir presents Bahrain as a global leader in the cross-border international sukuk market.

With regard to Bangladesh, a Muslim-dominated country, Abdul Mannan establishes that the Islamic finance industry is experiencing faster growth than its conventional counterpart. He concludes that sukuk may constitute a strong and sustained capital market instrument for quickly transforming Bangladesh into a middle-income country.

A write-up on Brunei explores a few areas in which Islamic financial instruments can work efficiently; the authors of that chapter see a fresh impetus to rekindle the spirit of Islamic finance in the Abode of Peace.

Wang Yongbao Ahmed Musa describes the efforts made to introduce Islamic finance industry in China, and Jeffrey Graham establishes Islamic finance as one of the most rapidly growing segments in Canada, with Toronto possibly emerging as a North American center for Islamic finance.

Egypt had experienced some primitive form of Islamic banking in mid-1960s, but due to political reasons it did not continue, and Hegazy and Azmy discuss in detail the reasons behind such deadlock and conclude that the challenges in Egypt are not insurmountable.

The chapter on Hong Kong by Anthony Chan and Jee Lee suggests that participants in the Islamic finance market not overlook role of Hong Kong as being an excellent financial infrastructure and gateway to mainland China.

In India, the situation is different, as the potential for the industry to grow is immense and the existence of Shari'ah-based funds is very limited. Jayesh explores many positive factors for the growth of Islamic finance in India. I personally believe India will be the next big place for Islamic finance, although it may not be called as such.

In Indonesia, the Islamic banking industry is on a much higher growth trajectory than that of the rest of the world's Islamic banking industry, and Rifki Ismal discusses in detail the current situation of Islamic banking in that country.

Farhad Nili opines that Iran has been a pioneer in both the theoretical and the operational aspects of Islamic banking, but it has not been well introduced abroad due to the lack of constructive interaction of the country with the world's largest Muslim population.

Etsuaki Yoshida presents a comprehensive picture of Islamic finance in Japan.

Islamic finance in Jordan started in 1978 with 2 million dinars, which has increased to 125 million dinars. Khawla Al Nobani shares her analytical views toward this growing market.

While discussing the Islamic finance situation in Kazakhstan, Yerlan Alimzhanuly Baidaulet highlights the role of UAE as well as IDB Group in the empowerment of the Islamic finance industry in that country.

In Kenya, Islamic finance is a relatively new concept, but the country is looking to be the Islamic financial hub of East Africa. Rahma Hersi discusses many practical concerns, which must be given due consideration.

Issam Al Tawari expects that Islamic finance will remain strong in Kuwait, based on the country's economic fundamentals and the existing strength of Islamic banking in the country. Kuwait is home to Kuwait Finance House, one of the first Islamic banks in the world.

The authors of the chapter on Luxembourg strongly hope that this leading and highly diversified international financial center will continue to be at the forefront of the development of the still young Islamic finance industry.

In the chapter on Malaysia, Wan Abdul Rahim Kamil provides an analytical overview of the 30-year track record of building a successful domestic Islamic financial industry. He recognizes the key role of the country's regulators in instilling market confidence. Today, Malaysia is regarded as the most robust country in developing and implementing the Islamic finance industry's regulations.

Aishath Muneeze concludes that the Islamic finance industry is expected to flourish in the Maldives in the future and will exponentially increase.

Auwalu Ado highlights the great opportunity and potential that Nigeria has to become the Islamic finance hub in Africa.

In Oman, where Islamic banking was introduced very recently, the healthy growth of the industry is highly promising; Azmat Rique highlights a few unique aspects of Islamic banking regulations in Oman.

Mohammad Shoaib discusses various regulatory issues and political and economic threats to the Islamic finance industry in Pakistan and concludes that despite all of the challenges with such a huge Muslim population, Pakistan is undeniably a land of untapped potential for Islamic finance.

As per Steve Troop's analyses, Qatar's growth rate for Islamic finance continues to outstrip that of conventional finance. In fact, this is a trend I myself have observed in most of the jurisdictions where Islamic finance is allowed to flourish.

Saudi Arabia has recently introduced a number of new regulations that opens additional horizons for the growth of Islamic finance. This giant Arab country, which is proud to be Islam's birthplace, will soon show its true potential materialized.

The chapter on Singapore was fair to declare that Islamic finance will remain just one of many options and not the main driver of growth of Singapore's financial sector.

The growth of the Islamic finance industry is visible in South Africa, and according to Amman Muhammad, it is becoming a more accessible alternative for minority Muslims.

In Sri Lanka, as described by Reyaz Mihular, the Islamic finance industry has seen tremendous development, and increasing acceptance is evident in the small but economically powerful Muslim population besides the majority Singhalese.

The opportunity for Islamic banking in Tanzania has yet to be realized, even though it has a large Muslim population.

The Islamic finance industry in Thailand, as explained by Aamir Shamin, is currently more focused on SMEs and micro SME financing, but the intention and potential are there to proceed.

The chapter on Turkey raises an interesting question on how easy it will be for Turkey to be an Islamic finance center. The authors conclude that the country requires a paradigm shift to create a better environment for Islamic finance, which is currently strongly secular.

The chapter on the United Kingdom states an exciting fact that the Islamic banking and finance system in that country operates in such a way that the market players develop and expand their businesses globally while being based in London—true to that country's reputation as being the world's preferred financial center.

The chapter on the United States discusses the regulatory issues faced by Islamic finance, which is proving to be a hindrance toward the penetration of Islamic finance in the United States.

The author of this Foreword tries to appreciate the role of Dubai and UAE as a native land of Islamic banking, which is now preparing to take a global leadership role in promoting Islamic economics and finance.