Growth in Oman’s Islamic Banking Sector to Continue Despite COVID-19: Fitch Ratings

According to Fitch Ratings (Fitch), growth in Oman’s Islamic banking sector is likely to continue into 2021-2022 building on the strong momentum seen in 2020, despite the dual impacts of COVID-19 and lower oil prices.

Why it matters?

The penetration of Islamic banking and finance products is expected to keep rising, with Islamic financing in Oman having risen a strong 9.5% in 2020 versus just 2.1% growth in loans from conventional banks. Demand for Islamic banking and finance products is the main driver, together with support from conventional banks offering Islamic products through ‘Islamic windows’ and favourable sector regulations. The potential for growth is high, given Oman’s majority-Muslim demographic and low banking pe...