Abstract
This chapter discusses the state of play of Islamic finance in Spain today. The chapter is divided into four sections. Section 11.2 looks at the rich Islamic legacy, particularly the development and flourishing of waqf in Al-Andalus, that makes Spain unique in the whole of Western Europe; and yet, today Islamic community does not benefit from it. Section 11.3 discusses the prospects of Islamic finance in a country where this industry is yet to set foot. On the other hand, Sect. 11.4 looks at Takāful as the one constituent pillar of Islamic finance that would have a realistic opportunity of implementation by way of taking advantage of a culture of mutual insurance which exists in Spain. All this in a context of crisis in Takāful which, paradoxically, may provide Spain with an opportunity. Finally, Sect. 11.5 looks at the one area which has seen growth in Spain: Islamic finance in academia. The premise and conclusion of the chapter is that, to the extent that Islamic finance has a future in Spain, it will have to be based on an ambitious and daring agenda, namely, that of presenting Islamic finance as a social impact solution.
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Notes
- 1.
La Fundación de Madrid in De Mayrit a Madrid (2015), pp. 24–39.
- 2.
Estudio Demográfico de la Población Musulmana, UCIDE (2018). All figures in this section come from this timely study.
- 3.
Algeria, Bangladesh, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Senegal. Each one of these nationalities is at least 10,000 strong. There are a further 20 nationalities represented in the Islamic community, none of which, however, reach the 10,000 mark.
- 4.
Islamic and Christian Spain in the Early Middle-Ages (1979). Thomas F. Glick refers to the Hispano-Muslims quite correctly as Neo-Muslims since the Arab and Berber population was Muslim prior to their arrival in the Iberian peninsula.
- 5.
Numerically, but certainly not militarily, where Berbers gained a stronghold; or culturally, where Arabs, “a ruling, bureaucratic and landholding elite,” became hegemonic.
- 6.
Muslims in Spain 1500 to 1614 (2005), see pp. 12–21. Harvey uses the “prudent approximation” of Sir John Elliot, who calculated that the population of Spain in the sixteenth century increased from 7.5 to 8.5 million. Elliot himself calculated the figure of 275,000 for the Muslim population at that time. This, Harvey warns us, apart from being “guesswork” (prudent, but guesswork nevertheless) may represent an underestimate. However, the Muslim population might not have exceeded five per cent by the end of the sixteenth century.
- 7.
I deliberately use the word “openly” as those numbers did not include what Harvey has denominated “crypto-Muslims.” See Harvey (2005).
- 8.
We can speak of “dominance” but not of “exclusivity” as the Christian and Jewish communities remained autonomous. That said, Harvey (1990) remarks that Islamic Granada largely evolved “towards being a purely Islamic state with only small dhimmi elements, and in particular, scarcely any Christians.” p. 14.
- 9.
At least to the extent that it was free of riba (usury) and commercial transactions were done on the basis of Islamic instruments and/or custom.
- 10.
I largely agree with Çizakça (1998) that Waqf “stands as one of the major achievements of Islamic civilization.”
- 11.
Carballeira Debasa, A.M. (2002). See in particular her general conclusions (pp. 347–355).
- 12.
In Arabic of al-Andalus, waqf is referred to as habis; and awqaf as habices.
- 13.
Harvey (2005), pp. 46–47.
- 14.
“y les dexaran y mandaran dexar en sus casas, haçiendas y bienes muebles y rayses, agora e en todo tiempo para siempre jamas.” Cited in Espinar Moreno (2009), p. 62.
- 15.
Andalusia, Aragon, Canary Islands, Ceuta, Melilla, Castille and Leon, Basque Country (Euskadi), and Madrid. In Spain the provision of education is the responsibility of the autonomous regions.
- 16.
And the report remarks that different Islamic communities have not always been able to open a mosque and/or a cemetery.
- 17.
Art. 1.2.
- 18.
Art. 2.1 b.
- 19.
Including, for example, leaving work an hour before sunset during the month of ramadán (Art. 12.1 of the Cooperation Agreement).
- 20.
See Serrano Falcón, C. Musulmanes y libertad religiosa en el trabajo asalariado en España in Carballeira y González (2016), p. 88.
- 21.
The reference to the hijab should be understood as referring generally to the use of any garment or object with a religious connotation; however, the hijab has, perhaps, become the most symbolic garment.
- 22.
This assumes that the Muslim candidate has already been successful at the job interview stage and is now fully employed.
- 23.
Ibidem. pp. 85–105.
- 24.
Ibid. pp. 101–102.
- 25.
Idem.
- 26.
Sesgos de género en el trabajo de las mujeres musulmanas en España in Carballeira and González (2016), pp. 107–128.
- 27.
Ibid. p. 107.
- 28.
Prologue to Carballeira and González (2016), p. 13.
- 29.
There are four individual indicators: Qualitative Development, Knowledge, Governance, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Awareness. The sum of these individual indicators gives the final indicator: IFDI Global Indicator.
- 30.
Nuñez Letamendia, et al. (2017). The report is worth reading altogether but the key findings (p. 94) give a very good insight into the problem.
- 31.
Ibidem.
- 32.
See Rodríguez-Moreno (2017).
- 33.
At the time of writing, the prospect of a “no deal” Brexit is by no means remote.
- 34.
See Garrido, I. et al. which is one of the very few that mentions Takāful, however briefly.
- 35.
See García-Herrero, A. et al. (2009), p. 128.
- 36.
See Garrido, C. and Rodríguez-Monroy, C. An Approach to Islamic Finance in Spain (2015), p. 7.
- 37.
See Canalejo. G and Alfredo Cabellos (2009), who are amongst the very few (1) to remark on the possible use of the European passport by UK-based Islamic banks and (2) to ask themselves: “when will we see Islamic windows in Spanish banks”?
- 38.
See Guiding Principles on Governance for Takāful (Islamic Insurance) Undertakings (2009), p. 2.
- 39.
Idem. p. 2. footnote 4.
- 40.
To a very large extent, any reference here to mutual entities could easily apply to cooperative societies.
- 41.
Art. 7 Ley de Ordenación y Supervisión de los Seguros Privados.
- 42.
Art. 9 idem.
- 43.
Art. 13 idem.
- 44.
Art. 18 idem.
- 45.
Art. 10 idem.
- 46.
Art. 13 idem.
- 47.
Art. 19 idem.
- 48.
So stated Omar Ansary, AAOIFI Vice-Secretary, at a meeting organized by Casa Árabe, Madrid, on January 24, 2018.
- 49.
Thomson-Reuters-ICD, Islamic Finance Development Report 2016, p. 29.
- 50.
The IFSB describes Tabarruʿ as fundamental to Takāful schemes (Guiding Principles on Governance for Takāful (Islamic Insurance) Undertakings, p. 5).
- 51.
Article 2 of the Malaysia Takāful Act 1984.
- 52.
See the review of this debate in Nana, Abdullah (2016) particularly pp. 70–75.
- 53.
I refer to that said by Omar Ansary at the meeting previously referred to.
- 54.
El-Gamal, M., Mutuality, reciprocity and justice within the context of a unified theory of ribs and gharar, in S. Nazim Ali (ed), Takāful and Islamic Cooperative Finance (2016), pp. 48–61.
- 55.
As per the Global Islamic Finance Development Indicator developed by ICD-Thomson-Reuters. See ICD-Thomson Reuters Islamic Finance Development Report 2016.
- 56.
The Distance Learning National University.
- 57.
A Saudi university based in Jeddah.
- 58.
ICD is a multilateral development financial institution and is part of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB).
- 59.
UOC is located in Barcelona.
- 60.
HBMSU is an e-university based in Dubai.
- 61.
IRTI is an entity within the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) which serves as research centre of the IDB Group.
- 62.
CEIEFI was established in Barcelona in 2013.
- 63.
ICD-Thomson Reuters Report 2016.
- 64.
See the rather comprehensive list of publications published by the Observatorio de Finanzas Islámicas in Las finanzas islámicas en España 2017.
- 65.
Compared to the 160 research papers produced in the UK in three years (2013–2015).
- 66.
It is important to distinguish between research and publications on Islamic Finance and Arabic Studies. Spain is rich in research and publication regarding the latter. My remarks here refer exclusively to Islamic Finance.
- 67.
Cited in Nana, Abdullah (2016), A proposed marriage between endowments, mutual insurance and the institution of agency in Islamic Law: an introduction to the waqf-wakālah model of takāful in Takāful and Islamic Cooperative Finance edited by S. Nazim Ali et al.
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Rodríguez-Moreno, G. (2019). Islamic Finance in Spain. In: Hajjar, M. (eds) Islamic Finance in Europe. Palgrave Studies in Islamic Banking, Finance, and Economics. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04094-9_11
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