Where Islamic fintech grows next

Over the last decade, Fintech has moved into the mainstream of financial services and consumer behavior. The Fintech market revenue is projected to grow fivefold to $1.5 trillion by 2030, with growth driven in part by digital access expanding faster than traditional offerings.

Islamic Fintech is emerging along with this broader momentum, to address the increasing demand for Shariah compliant and ethical products. The global Islamic Fintech market 198 billion in 2024/25 and is projected to reach USD 341 billion by 2029, growing at 11.5% per year. Yet it still represents a small share of global Fintech activity. That gap highlights where the next phase of Islamic Fintech growth is likely to come from.

In any conversation related to technology, it’s difficult to escape the ‘AI’ hyperbole and the lofty expectations set by marketers. But practically speaking, AI does provide a golden opportunity to build and iterate quickly and address structural issues. Operational scaling has long been a challenge in Islamic finance. Due to bespoke products, manual Shariah reviews, lack of data and high compliance costs.  AI, if used responsibly, can address many of these issues, from supporting alternative credit scoring for underserved SMEs, automating Shariah monitoring, and improving risk management. The value is simple, AI can offer lower cost, faster decisions, and wider access, while preserving ethical considerations.