REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MANADO -- Non Muslim clients dominated the users of funding service by a sharia bank, Bank Muamalat, in Manado, the chief of the branch office of the Islamic bank Giat Waluyo said.

Around 70 percent of the users of the financing by the Manado branch of Bank Muamalat are non Muslims, Giat said here on Monday (25/5).

Bank Muamalt, which is based in Jakarta is the first Islamic bank in the country established by the Association of Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals in 1992.

Giat said Bank Muamalat operates under the sharia law but it is open for non Muslim customers.

The establishment of Bank Muamalat in 1992 marked the first operation of Sharia bank in Indonesia.

Currently almost all major banks in the country have sharia units or subsidiaries.

Giat said sharia economy concerns not only about halal or riba (excessive interest), which is forbidden in sharia economy, but no less important is cooperation.

Sharia banks is based on mutually beneficial venture, profit sharing and receiving no interest and offering no credit to business related to gambling and other forbidden business.

Islam is not against cooperation between Muslims and non Muslim members of the community but cooperation among Muslims is the priority, Giat said.

"However, in practice in Bank Muamalat is the contrary with borrowers are dominated by non Muslims," he said.

Among the big recipients of funding by Bank Muamalat up to hundreds of billion rupiahs are non Muslim Chinese business people.

"The depositors, however, are all Muslims. That means most of the funds deposited by Muslims in the bank are used by non Muslims, he said.

Ikuti Whatsapp Channel Republika