How a former Birmingham king inspired locals to make the Midlands the home of Islamic finance

When it comes to money, Islam has its own set of rules and values. And one Moseley man is determined to make the Midlands the home of Islamic finance.

Sultan Choudhury is the chief executive of Offa, a Solihull-based Islamic finance property company. A pioneer of Islamic finance in Britain and former CEO of the UK’s first Islamic bank, Choudhury says non-Muslims are increasingly moving towards using Islamic finance.

He claims it’s more than just not being able to pay or charging interest, the most common prejudice. The proud Brummie Muslim reveals that Islamic finance is all about clean ethics and values.

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This is due to a faith-based system that not only does not charge interest, but also refuses to invest in sectors that harm society, such as alcohol, tobacco and the arms trade. Choudhury shares why he sees Islamic finance as an “antidote” to negative perceptions of Islam, and the surprising origins of Islamic finance right here in Brum.

“I grew up in Small Heath and moved to Mosely and have lived there ever since,” he said, “I went to school at Aston and my parents were immigrants from Bangladesh. I’m also a Birmingham FC fan and my business partners are also Brummies.

“We are four local guys, I think, coming together to ensure that there are new opportunities for those who want products that adhere to their faith. I was part of the team that built the first Islamic bank in the Western world.

“Most people have to leave Birmingham to build a career in finance, I’ve been able to keep it in Birmingham.” Joining Offa as executive chairman in 2020, Choudhury and his team set out to modernise Islamic finance through technology and paperless systems.

The Brummie touch goes further, as Offa derives from King Offa, a monarch who lived between 757 and 796 AD in the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Mercia, now known as the Midlands.

The king traded with Muslim rulers abroad and even produced a dinar (gold coin), with his name and the Shahadah (Islamic declaration of faith) inscribed on it. Choudhury continues: “Islamic finance is based on values ​​that are universal.

“People are scared by the word ‘sharia’, but its purpose embodies many things that everyone agrees on. It enshrines the fact that we are custodians of this land, that we operate with justice, impartiality and transparency.

“A lot of people think it’s just ‘oh, you don’t pay interest’, but that doesn’t get to the root of the problem. We avoid things that aren’t in line with our faith, like tobacco, gambling and alcohol, but we also want to promote something positive.

“We give our employees time off to work on charitable impacts of their choice and we pay them for that time. It’s not just about avoiding this and that, but we have to be more positive about what we’re doing.

“We are practicing Muslims who want to create a better world, but we are very inclusive. Our customer base is 44% non-Muslim and our team is very diverse because we believe these are universal values. I don’t like to pigeonhole everyone and say ‘Muslim’ and ‘non-Muslim’. Even non-Muslims would agree with our values ​​and ethics.”

A core value of Islamic finance is that money has no intrinsic value. Muslims cannot lend or receive money and expect to benefit from interest. Making money from money is forbidden.

Wealth should only be generated through legitimate trading and investment in assets, according to Al Rayan Bank. Choudhury believes this is just the beginning of Islamic finance, claiming there are gaps such as Islamic car financing or Islamic credit cards.

He said: “Islamic finance is good for Britain. The UK is the number one place where it can flourish and we are hopeful that the new Labour government can continue that trend.

“I think Islamic finance is an antidote to some of the negativity we see about Islam in the West. It shows us creating wealth, jobs and opportunities in Britain.”

In addition to its standard products, Offa is launching a new buy-to-let (BTL) financing service that is available to new and experienced landlords who are either British residents or UK expats. Rather than using interest, the BTL product involves the Islamic finance principles of joint ownership with leasehold.

Customers buy the property in partnership with Offa and make monthly payments to increase their share over time, becoming owners of the property. The service is available to anyone buying a property in England and Wales who is over the age of 21 and whose property value is between £60,000 and £1 million.

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