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A Gulf state-owned bank has rolled out a new MasterCard that not only complies with Islamic laws banning loans with interest but also includes an embedded compass pointing the way to Mecca.
The new card from Al Hillal bank in United Arab Emirates is the latest in a growing array of banking products aimed at the world's 1.6 billion Muslims that comply with Shariah, or Islamic law.
"We continue to see a growing demand, especially in the Middle East, for Islamic banking in general, and more specifically in our case, for cards that are Shariah-compliant in accordance with the tenets of the Islamic faith," MasterCard spokesman James Issokson said.