Will Britain's no-interest Islamic bond generate much interest? Prime Minister Cameron announced last month that Britain will issue an interest-free, sharia-compliant bond. But Islamic investment may be a tough sell to Muslims.
Asif Tufail, a shop assistant, is more careful than most young Britons to spend not a penny more than he earns. A devout Muslim, he believes it is wrong to pay – or receive – interest.
That means he also requests his bank to keep the payments they would usually make when his account is in credit. "Even if I became rich, I wouldn't want the interest," he says. "My religion is more important to me."
This is music to the ears of a growing number of bankers offering financial products that are geared to Britain's Muslims by adhering to sharia, or Islamic law, most notably a prohibition on interest.