Musharakah Financing: Profitability Improvement Tool for Islamic Banks

Abstract

Islamic commercial banks are part of country’s financial system and play a crucial role in business industry. Similar to other business firms, Islamic commercial banks seek profits, growth and sustainability. This study attempted to analyze the effects of musharakah financing on the profitability of Islamic commercial banks. The majority of literature of finance relates to traditional finance, which has so many weaknesses. In contrast, this study focuses on Islamic banking theory with specific emphasis on Musharakah financing which is essential mechanism in the practice of Islamic banking and finance. The data were analyzed using statistical package for social science to examine the extant of the effects of musharakah financing on the profitability of Islamic commercial banks. Results: The results showed that musharakah financing has a positive effect on profitability of Islamic commercial banks (r = 0.882, p < 0.05). The study concludes that increase in Musharakah financing significantly improves profitability of Islamic commercial banks. The study presents several managerial implications, suggesting the importance of increasing service exposure to attract new customers, enhance public awareness towards musharakah financing, conduct regular visits to gain deep and accurate information concerning the operations of joint ventures business, and finally, the bank should have clearly written policy on musharakah agreement, financing, management and control systems.  This study contributes to the existing literature on Islamic finance and banking, highlighting its growing global practice and theory, driven by community ethical and financial needs, innovation, and market competitiveness.