LEGAL REGULATION OF THE ISLAMIC FINANCES: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN, «ASTANA» INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CENTRE AND UNITED KINGDOM

Abstract

Islamic financing currently became one of the most rapidly developing industry representing moral alternative for the Muslim population in comparison with the contemporary financial sector of the west. The main difference of Islamic financing stems from the fact that it assumes more balanced distribution of the risks between all of the parties and prohibition of the usury or interest on behalf of the financial organizations. Despite the fact that Muslim population being the largest religious group in the Republic of Kazakhstan, the share of Islamic financing, including Islamic banking is insignificant in within the financial market of the state. The author comes to the conclusion that the Republic of Kazakhstan has prepared a sufficient regulatory framework for the development of the Islamic financing in the country. Moreover, the analysis suggests that with the emergence and development of the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) there is even more comprehensive and elaborate framework within a new common law legal system of the financial centre. However, through the analysis of the legislative system of the Republic of Kazakhstan and after conducting a comparative study with the acting law of the AIFC as well as with the legal regulation in the United Kingdom, the author concludes that there is still one apparent legal obstacle that hinders the development of the Islamic financing in the Republic of Kazakhstan.