The new, but lucrative participation banking sector in Turkey is attracting the covetous glances of foreign Islamic banks, at a time when the Arab world is in turmoil. Local news source, Haberturk, raised the specter that foreign buyers were looking to secure a stake in Asya Katilim Bankasi, Turkey’s largest participation bank. Because of Turkey’s secularist constitution, Islamic banks are referred to as participation banks. The report claimed that HSBC had been mandated to sell 25% of Bank Asya to Qatar Islamic Bank – this was swiftly denied by Bank Asya, but neither confirmed nor denied by QIB.
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