Islamin Finance Low , Economics & practice
Islamin Finance Low , Economics & practice
By: Mahmoud A. El-Gamal
This book provides an overview of the practice of Islamic finance and the historical
roots that define its modes of operation. The focus of the book is analytical and forwardlooking.
It shows that Islamic finance exists primarily today as a form of rent-seeking
legal arbitrage. An alternative that emphasizes substance rather than form would serve
religious and moral objectives better, through mutual and similar financial practices.
Mahmoud A. El-Gamal is Professor of Economics and Statistics at Rice University,
where he holds the endowed Chair in Islamic Economics, Finance, and Management.
Prior to joining Rice in 1998, he had been an associate professor of Economics at
the University of Wisconsin at Madison and an assistant professor of Economics at
California Institute of Technology and the University of Rochester. He has also served
in the Middle East Department of the International Monetary Fund (1995–6) and
as the first Scholar in Residence on Islamic Finance at the U.S. Department of the
Treasury in 2004. He has published extensively in the areas of econometrics, finance,
experimental economics, and Islamic law and finance.