KNews.id- The development of the Islamic economy throughout 2021 is predicted to continue to grow positively and the Islamic banking industry will play a dominant role, supported by the presence of PT Bank Syariah Indonesia Tbk, the entity resulting from the merger of three Islamic banks owned by state-owned banks.
Head of the Sharia Economics Study Program, Faculty of Economics and Management, Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) Jaenal Effendi explained the Islamic banking industry will play a dominant role in the development of the Islamic economy because this sector has recorded good growth in 2020.
Based on data from the Financial Services Authority (OJK), until June 2020 the asset value of the Islamic banking industry could grow to 9.22 percent on an annual basis (yoy), higher than the growth in conventional banking assets, which was 4.89 percent yoy.
According to Jaenal, the merged Islamic bank will move together with other Islamic banks and collaborate with Islamic financial institutions, securities companies, investment managers, fintech companies and ZISWAF fund management institutions to serve the needs of business players in the halal industry or other industries.
“Thus, the sharia economic ecosystem will be well formed and sustainable and it is hoped that it will meet the needs of the domestic and international markets,” said Jaenal, Thursday (14/1).
Apart from being supported by the existence of a merged Islamic bank, the Islamic economy also has the potential to grow rapidly if the great potential of social finance or ZISWAF (Zakat, Infaq, Almsgiving, and Waqf) can be utilized throughout the year.
According to Jaenal, currently Indonesia has the potential for national zakat up to IDR 217 trillion and IDR 233 trillion potential for productive waqf. The trillions of potential ZISWAF can be useful if the collection and distribution of it is maximized for the people who have the right.
He added that ziswaf through its social protection mechanism in protecting the weak was able to help overcome the threat of crisis amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
This is also reinforced by the generosity status of the Indonesian people, where Indonesia has also succeeded in becoming the most desirable country in the World Giving Index.
“In addition, with the Covid-19 vaccine, it is hoped that economic recovery can run well so that it is hoped that the economy and sharia can continue to grow positively,” he explained.
Even though it has the opportunity to grow positively, the development of the Islamic economy throughout 2021 is said to be able to answer a number of challenges. One of them, there must be steps to overcome the problem of the limited reach of Islamic financial institutions to remote areas of the country.
Sharia Financial Institutions (LKS) that have generally been present to the villages are in the form of BMT or sharia cooperatives, so that the reach of funding and financing at Islamic banks is still quite limited to cities or regencies.
“In this case, Islamic banking must expand the network. Capital in Islamic banks must also be increased so that network expansion can be carried out, “he said.
Later, as a note, Bank Syariah Indonesia is predicted to have total assets of up to IDR 250 trillion with a core capital of more than IDR 20.4 trillion. This number places the merged bank in the list of the top 10 largest banks in Indonesia in terms of assets, and the top 10 largest Islamic banks in the world in terms of market capitalization. (Ade)
