INCEIF University Journals
Not a member yet
394 research outputs found
Sort by
Interest-free microfinance in India: a case study of Bait-un-Nasr Urban Cooperative Credit Society
Get PDFPurpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand interest-free microfinance practices in India, identify issues and recommend possible solutions.
Design/methodology/approach
To achieve the proposed objectives, Bait-un-Nasr (BuN) Urban Cooperative Credit Society, located in Mumbai, India, is considered for the case study. The study is based on both primary and secondary data. The primary data are collected through questionnaires and secondary data from various sources. Performance of the institution is assessed in terms of growth and sustainability indicators.
Findings
It is found that BuN has been successful in providing interest-free microfinance services in India. A few operational issues have been highlighted and possible solutions are recommended. Moreover, it is found that in comparison to the microfinance industry standards, the performance of BuN has been lower.
Research limitations/implications
BuN is evaluated from only growth and sustainability aspects and not from the aspect of the socio-economic impacts of its services on the lives of customers.
Practical implications
This study would become a documented source of interest-free microfinance practices in India. Moreover, the recommendations provided, if implemented, would help BuN in further growth and development.
Social implications
This study would help create awareness in the society about the practices of interest-free microfinance.
Originality/value
This paper highlights the interest-free microfinance practices in India that have not received the needed attention. The paper also attempts to identify key issues pertaining to interest-free microfinance with possible solutions.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIF-10-2018-011
Editorial
Get PDFبسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
It is easier to describe academic integrity in terms of what it is not. Plagiarism is often associated with a lack of academic integrity. Lack of academic integrity is also manifested in the use of inaccurate data, misrepresentation of data, and misuse of artificial intelligence (AI) tools for paraphrasing in academic writing.
In an article on ‘Research Ethics: Decoding Plagiarism and Attribution’, iThenticate describes ten forms of plagiarism and attribution issues as rated by several hundred scientific researchers according to their perceived degree of occurrence and seriousness. Failure to provide accurate citations and not citing a reference when paraphrasing were not the only types of common plagiarism mistakes. Many authors do not realise that reusing work from their own previously published articles without attribution is a case of self-plagiarism. Also, submitting a manuscript to multiple publications, resulting in the same article being published more than once, is a serious violation of research ethics and academic integrity. The latter was ranked second among the most common forms of plagiarism by the iThenticate report. The forms of plagiarism perceived as being most serious include: taking the work of another author and publishing it under one’s own name; verbatim copy-and-paste without proper attribution; providing inaccurate authorship; listing authors who made no contribution to the research; and denying credit to contributing authors.
While it is the responsibility of authors to uphold the highest values associated with academic integrity, such as honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility, publishers and journal editors are equally responsible to ensure that submitted manuscripts do not breach academic conduct standards. Plagiarism detection software such as iThenticate or Turnitin is often used to detect the similarity index of the content with other sources, thus helping editors to determine if the content draws significantly from other publications or has been previously published elsewhere, either partly or in a substantially similar form, by the same authors. Submitted articles often have to be passed through such software multiple times and adjusted accordingly to ensure a consistently low similarity level at the different stages of the publication process. Based on the editor’s experience at ISRA International Journal of Islamic Finance (IJIF), it has even been discovered, just as an article is about to be published, that an article of similar content was recently published elsewhere. Therefore, authors have the moral responsibility to explicitly declare if their submission draws from an unpublished conference paper or dissertation work and confirm the originality of their manuscripts.
Following best practices in publishing, IJIF now requests authors to declare each author’s contribution in the work submitted, make a conflict of interest statement, acknowledge any research funding or grant received or any other forms of contribution, and make available a summary of their data which will be provided to readers upon request. This information is now published at the end of each article to meet the standards of publishing ethics.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND ACADEMIC WRITING
While technological advances have significantly facilitated the dissemination of research and made accessible a wealth of knowledge to writers, the advent of AI has posed additional challenges to academic integrity principles. Without the facility provided by AI tools, researchers used to make personal efforts and, at best, made use of synonyms to paraphrase others’ work and avoid literal copy-and-paste of texts. AI-powered tools such as plagiarism changers and word/text spinners can now paraphrase texts and even whole manuscripts while retaining the original ideas and meanings, maintaining coherence and improving language presentation. If ideas are not attributed to the original source through citations, this is still called paraphrasing plagiarism, irrespective of whether the intention was deliberate or unintentional.
Plagiarism software detectors like Turnitin now provide details on the percentage of AI-written content within the similarity report issued for a new submission. In our opinion, a high AI similarity index, say beyond 30 per cent, would mean that it is highly unlikely that the authors have produced an original work. IJIF requests authors to explain a high similarity index for both plagiarism checks and AI-written content.
IJIF Volume 15 Number 4 December 2023
This issue publishes seven articles on various areas of Islamic finance. As the Islamic finance industry is expanding in different jurisdictions, most of these articles cover aspects of Islamic finance development in leading countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as countries trying to advance Islamic finance such as Uzbekistan and Thailand. The key objectives of these articles are as follows:
‘An Exploratory Study of Manfaʿah (Usufruct) in Ijārah Accounting from the Sharīʿah Perspective’ by Rahmat Ullah, Irum Saba and Riaz Ahmad. This article addresses the Sharīʿah perspectives of treating manfaʿah (usufruct) in the ijārah (lease) contract as māl (asset) according to the new standards on leasing issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and on ijārah issued by AAOIFI. It particularly examines the legal status of ownership of usufruct following its treatment as māl in ijārah financing.
‘Viability of Cash Waqf-Linked Ṣukūk in Malaysia’ by Sherin Kunhibava, Aishath Muneeza, Zakariya Mustapha, Maryam Khalid and Thong Ming Sen. In view of the successful introduction of cash waqf-linked ṣukūk (CWLS) in Indonesia, this article examines the potential for implementing CWLS by Islamic financial institutions in Malaysia and discusses its viability under the relevant legal and regulatory frameworks of waqf and ṣukūk in the Malaysian context.
‘Legal Challenges in Establishing the Islamic Capital Market in Uzbekistan’ by Alam Asadov, Ikhtiyorjon Turaboev and Mohd Zakhiri Md. Nor. The Islamic capital market is yet to be developed in Uzbekistan. This study discusses the possibility of its introduction and investigates the legal barriers impeding the process.
‘The Moderator Effects of Owner-Manager Knowledge on the Intention to Adopt Islamic Financing Facilities in Malaysia’ by Hazalina Mat Soha, Mohd Zukime Mat Junoh, Tunku Salha Tunku Ahmad and Md. Aminul Islam. This article assesses the role of owner-manager knowledge as a moderating factor in the relationship between innovation, organisational and environmental characteristics, and the intention to adopt Islamic financing facilities in the context of Malaysia.
‘Investigating Equity-Based Financing and Debt-Based Financing in Islamic Banks in Indonesia’ by Hasan Mukhibad and Doddy Setiawan. Using data over the period 2009–2019, this article investigates whether equity-based financing as practised by Islamic banks in Indonesia generates fixed income similar to debt-based financing.
Factors Influencing Thai Muslims’ Willingness to Donate Cash Waqf to Religious Projects by Aris Hassama and Nor Asmat Ismail. This study looks into the motivational and economic factors that positively impact the willingness of cash waqf donors in the southernmost provinces of Thailand to donate to religious projects.
‘Exploration of a New Zakat Management System Empowered by Blockchain Technology in Malaysia’ by Amelia Nur Natasha Nazeri, Shifa Mohd Nor, Aisyah Abdul-Rahman, Mariani Abdul-Majid and Siti Ngayesah Ab. Hamid. This article seeks to examine how the proposed implementation of blockchain technology in the current zakat management system in Malaysia would work and how it would help improve efficiency in the zakat collection and distribution process.
We congratulate the authors for the successful publication of their articles and wish our readers a pleasant read.
Allah (SWT) is the Bestower of success, and He knows best.
Beebee Salma SairallyISRA Research Management Centre, INCEIF University, Malaysi
Developing best practices of Islamic estate planning: a construction based on the perspectives of individuals and estate planning providers
Get PDFPurpose
This paper aims to develop the best practices of Islamic estate planning for Muslims. Islamic estate planning is a fixed proposal for the management and outlook of an individual’s assets throughout their life and upon their passing, created by means of existing Islamic estate planning tools, for instance, farāʾiḍ (inheritance), waṣiyyah (will), hibah (gift) and waqf (endowment).
Design/methodology/approach
The paper used an interview method to obtain information on the best practices of Islamic estate planning. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the respondents and estate planning providers in the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia. The data gathered was analysed using thematic analysis which involved five phases to construct the best practices of Islamic estate planning.
Findings
The paper identifies important elements in Islamic estate planning. The elements were outlined as the crucial things that Muslims should do to plan for intergenerational transfer and earning a good share in the hereafter.
Research limitations/implications
The first limitation of the paper is that the best practices were developed based on a qualitative method. There is no evidence of its validity, which is a gap that can be explored in the future. Second, it involves the perceptions of two types of respondents (individuals and Islamic estate planning providers), which may be broadened to other related stakeholders such as regulators, in future studies.
Originality/value
This paper presents a framework of best practices of Islamic estate planning, it being one of the first studies to do so, which is not only useful and relevant for Malaysian Muslims but also for Muslims in other countries.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIF-03-2020-005
Cash waqf model for micro enterprises’ human capital development
Get PDFPurpose
The present paper aims to propose a viable alternative model for human capital development (HCD), termed as the integrated cash waqf micro enterprises investment (ICWME-I) model, which is expected to contribute to the development of micro enterprises in Malaysia.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a conceptual paper for the development of the ICWME-I model. It is purely qualitative in nature, using content analysis. It comprehensively reviews the literature related to HCD issues faced by micro enterprises and existing studies related to cash waqf (Islamic endowment) to construct the ICWME-I model.
Findings
The proposed ICWME-I model is specially designed for HCD of micro enterprises. It is an appropriate initiative to upgrade micro enterprises through HCD programmes by ensuring proper utilization of cash waqf funds to build modern training centres at subsidized costs with state-of-the-art facilities. The training centres would subsidize the participation fees of micro enterprises and provide them with facilities to undertake education and training programmes, as well as other kinds of activities for upgrading, improving and enhancing human capital capacity and skills of micro enterprises. The potential challenges of the ICWME-I model are also highlighted in this study.
Research limitations/implications
This paper attempts to construct the ICWME-I model based on an extensive review of literature related to micro enterprises, cash waqf and HCD. Among its major limitations is the fact that the ICWME-I model is not empirically validated and tested in this research. This can be carried out in future studies.
Practical implications
The present study could have an enormous impact on micro entrepreneurs via HCD programmes. The most important impact would be on government budgets, as this ICWME-I model is expected to generate its own funds from cash waqf for micro enterprises’ HCD.
Originality/value
This paper brings forward an original and viable model to develop human capital for micro enterprises development. This model involves the building of training centres using cash waqf raised from donors.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIF-08-2018-009
Financial reporting of intangible assets in Islamic finance
Get PDFPurpose
This paper aims to address the financial reporting dimensions of intangible assets with specific reference to International Accounting Standards (IAS) 38 as well as relevant International Financial Reporting Standards (IAS 38 exclusion) that are embedded within intangible assets. These have implications for Islamic financial assets with identifiable and measurable intangible components.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses the qualitative research method by way of interviews followed by focus group discussions with professional accountants/accounting academics and Sharīʿah scholars/advisors from academia, the industry and regulatory bodies. Analysis of relevant literature is made to understand the subject matter and Sharīʿah-related issues.
Findings
The study observes that the accounting dimensions of tangible assets are generally consistent with Sharīʿah requirements. However, significant variation arises when the dimensions of intangible assets are represented in financial assets.
Research limitations/implications
The paper presents an exploratory in-depth analysis within the context of intangible assets as specified in IAS 38.
Originality/value
The paper elucidates the comparative accounting dimensions and Sharīʿah requirements in reporting financial assets.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIF-08-2017-002
Editorial
Get PDFResearch Ethics and Integrity
Research is a process that involves numerous stages—including developing the idea, formulating the research title, partnering with other researchers and the research subjects, developing the research methods, collecting and analysing data, reporting findings, writing and publishing the research, among others. At every stage of the research process, researchers are required to adhere to ethical norms to meet the overall objectives of research, notably to advance the body of knowledge and promote scholarship.
Upholding ethics in the conduct of research is important to ensure the promotion of truth and minimisation of error in research findings. Researchers should also be held accountable for responsible use of research grants and other matters such as compliance with regulations and policies related to research, or care for their subjects while collecting data. Above all, researchers should be held accountable for their research content and, as such, they should be concerned with the quality and integrity of their research so that their ideas can be further developed in future research.
Given the importance of research ethics, several professional bodies, government agencies and universities have developed ethical codes of conduct to be adopted by researchers. At an international level, efforts have also been made to foster more unified policies, guidelines and codes of conduct on research integrity. The ‘Singapore Statement on Research Integrity’, released in 2010, is a notable example.  
Determination of organisational essential needs as the basis for developing a maṣlaḥah-based performance measurement
Get PDFPurpose
The purpose of the study is twofold: first, it is to develop each aspect of maṣlaḥah ḍarūriyah (essential needs), i.e. dīn (faith/religion), nafs (soul), ʿaql (intellect), naṣl (descendants) and mal (wealth), into various aspects of organisational essential needs; second, it is to formulate maṣlaḥah-based performance measurement.
Design/methodology/approach
The research is an exploratory study that uses a two-stage design: defining the research question and developing the research design. The research question is how each element of maṣlaḥah ḍarūriyah can become an element of organisational essential needs. The research design developed is to formulate maṣlaḥah-based performance measurement.
Findings
The study concludes that maṣlaḥah ḍarūriyah could be developed as a basis for identifying organisational essential needs. The five elements of maṣlaḥah ḍarūriyah are developed into the following organisational essential needs: worship orientation, internal process orientation, talent orientation, learning orientation, customer orientation and wealth orientation. Maṣlaḥah-based performance measurement uses five variables: strategic objective, measure, formula, target and strategic initiatives and applies the modified plan – do – check – action cycle: performance planning, performance implementation, performance evaluation and performance action.
Practical implications
Organisational essential needs can be developed by Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) into performance measurement. IFIs have six essential needs that can be developed into performance variables. Key performance indicators that can be developed for each need are worship orientation (social responsibility, regulatory compliance and Sharīʿah compliance); internal process orientation (innovation process, digital adaptation and employee satisfaction); talent orientation (career development, talent pool, compensation and benefits); learning orientation (training programme, training evaluation and return on training investment); customer orientation (customer engagement, customer satisfaction, customer survey and promotion programme); wealth orientation (profitability, cost-cutting, share prices, dividends, cost efficiency and financial sustainability).
Originality/value
This paper contributes to new knowledge. The study attempts to discuss the organisational essential needs based on the maṣlaḥah ḍarūriyah concept, while previous studies discussed organisational needs based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. In developing performance measurement, organisational performance is measured in a balanced manner. According to the concept of maṣlaḥah, not only financial factors but also worship, internal processes, talents, learning and customers define organisational needs. Thus, organisational needs are considered not only in terms of material factors but also in terms of spiritual (worship) factors.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIF-11-2017-004
The Dynamic Link Between Islamic and Conventional Deposit Rates in a Dual Banking System
Get PDFPurpose — This study empirically assesses the extent to which the conventional deposit rate (CDR) affects the Islamic deposit rate (IDR) in Indonesia and Malaysia within the dual banking system.
Design/Methodology/Approach — This study uses non-linear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) and panel cointegration. Monthly data are employed, but the time period for the two countries examined is different because of data availability. The study thus covers the period 2009:M1 to 2020:M12 for Indonesia and 2000:M1 to 2020:M12 for Malaysia.
Findings — The findings confirm evidence of the long-run link between IDR and CDR, where the IDRs in Indonesia and Malaysia asymmetrically respond to changes in CDRs. In addition, Indonesia’s IDRs adjust faster in response to the decline in CDRs compared to increases in CDRs. However, Malaysia’s IDRs adapt faster in response to increases in CDRs than their decreases. The panel cointegration results reinforce the asymmetric findings.
Originality/Value — To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first study to examine the extent to which IDRs asymmetrically respond to CDRs in a dual baking system in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Practical Implications — Islamic banks (IBs) follow CDRs in determining IDRs due to uncompetitive IDRs, implying that IBs suffer from displaced commercial risk. Therefore, IBs may adopt a policy to address liquidity issues through investment risk reserves (IRR) and profit equalization reserves (PER) to reduce the distinctive gap between IDRs and CDRs
An Empirical Investigation of the Factors Affecting Perceptions of University Students in Pakistan on the Usage of Islamic Equity Crowdfunding
Get PDFPurpose — This paper aims to explore the key motivational factors that influence investors to invest in Islamic equity crowdfunding (I-ECF) platforms.
Design/Methodology/Approach — The study is quasi-experimental with a pre-test/post-test design where the respondents, including 350 business and computer studies students from public and private universities in Pakistan, were selected for experimental manipulations, i.e., showing videos. The questionnaire was used to assess the difference in the perceptions of potential investors.
Findings — The results support the hypotheses that project innovativeness, return on investment, perceived informativeness, protection policy and a helping attitude positively influence the investors’ willingness to invest in I-ECF. However, risk of investment and third-party seal were proven to play an insignificant role in influencing the investors’ willingness to invest in I-ECF.
Originality/Value — I-ECF is an unexplored phenomenon in Pakistan. This study is limited to finding the key factors that influence students’ inclination towards its usage. Future researchers can study it from an entrepreneur’s perspective.
Research Limitations — This study is limited to potential investors’ perspectives towards the usage of I-ECF platforms. However, various other research areas need to be explored such as entrepreneurial intentions, usage of the capital market, platform and institution-related issues for the promotion of I-ECF.
Practical Implications — This study will have practical implications for young entrepreneurs, regulators and researchers so that they may capitalise and give weightage to key identified factors for the promotion and usage of I-ECF platforms to raise seed money for new businesses. For example, crowdfunding as an alternative method of financing may gain popularity by making hundreds of connections through brand ambassadors. Universities could partner with equity-based crowdfunding (ECF) platforms like StartEngine as their intra-university platforms. Furthermore, the study provides valuable insights to regulatory bodies to assist them in formulating regulations for I-ECF. If startups (e.g., university incubators) get money from students via ECF platforms, ECF will grow into a sustainable model that can contribute to the country’s long-term development by fostering a knowledge economy as a source of wealth
Editorial
Get PDFIn the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. In a comment published by Fitch Ratings in February 2021, low public awareness and lack of confidence in the Sharīʿah compliance of Islamic finance products were highlighted as the key challenges for the future growth of the Islamic finance industry. These challenges are found to be most prominent in least developed Islamic finance markets, contributing to low demand and the prevalence of a negligible Islamic finance industry.
Knowledge sharing and dissemination of information on the industry’s practices are important building blocks in creating public awareness on Islamic finance. According to the ICD-REFINITIV Islamic Finance Development Report 2020, Southeast Asia maintains a lead in Islamic finance education and research – key components through which Islamic finance knowledge is assessed. Indonesia hosts the largest number of Islamic finance education providers, including those institutions which offer degree courses. In 2019, Malaysia produced the highest number of research papers on Islamic finance and featured among the top countries which are most discussed in Islamic finance research articles. Even at the level of ISRA International Journal of Islamic Finance, a large number of article submissions come from authors affiliated to Malaysian institutions, and they tend to discuss Islamic finance issues related to the Malaysian context. It is therefore through proactive efforts – not only related to Islamic finance knowledge but also in various other aspects – that countries such as Malaysia are advancing developments in the industry, and Indonesia is growing its Islamic finance market share