DUBAI: A global body for Islamic finance has issued a draft standard on centralised Shariah boards, aiming to improve corporate governance in the industry and increase the consumer appeal of Shariah-compliant financial products.

The proposed rules come at a time when Islamic banks are trying to widen their appeal to consumers in core markets of the Middle East and Southeast Asia, while opening up entirely new ones particularly across Africa.

Islamic banks have traditionally set up internal Shariah boards, employing scholars to rule on whether their products are religiously permissible. Such self-regulation proved useful in the early years, but the establishment of independent Shariah boards at national level to encourage homogeneous transactions that are cheap and quick to structure is gaining traction.-Reuters