Q1: You hold a PhD in Management Sciences and are an active researcher in ethical finance and ESG. How do you see Islamic finance contributing to the broader ESG and sustainable finance agenda in Europe?
We are witnessing a gradual convergence of ethical financial systems towards greater sustainability, driven by growing awareness of the negative externalities of economic and financial activities. Yet this transformation is taking place within an economic system deeply influenced by centuries of capital accumulation and financialisation.
In Europe, frameworks such as the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) reflect this evolution, creating common ground between Islamic and sustainable finance. However, Islamic finance is no longer alone in claiming an ethical identity.
Islamic finance can also contribute to a more fundamental debate about debt and interest. In France, for instance, the growing burden of public debt servicing illustrates how interest payments constrain budgetary choices. By questioning riba and promoting alternative financing arrangements, Islamic finance invites us to reconsider the relationship between finance, the real economy and risk-sharing. While it offers no simple solution to sovereign debt, it challenges assumptions rarely questioned in conventional finance.
Yet the greatest challenge may lie within Islamic finance itself. The industry risks being overtaken on ethical grounds if it continues to rely primarily on traditional Shariah screening based on sectoral exclusions and financial ratios, without systematically addressing environmental harm.
This is particularly paradoxical given that environmental preservation is deeply rooted in the higher objectives of Shariah (Maqasid al-Shar’ah). Our current research proposes an Environmental Shariah Screening framework that translates these principles into operational investment criteria, notably through carbon, water and waste intensity indicators.
Ultimately, Islamic finance must move beyond formal compliance towards measurable environmental and societal outcomes. It should not merely claim to be ethical; it should demonstrate its ethical impact.
Q2: You are both a researcher and the co-founder of SAAFI, a brokerage and advisory firm. How do you balance the theoretical rigour of academia with the practical demands of structuring real-world financial and insurance products?
I often describe academia and entrepreneurship as my two legs. I need both to maintain my balance and move forward. They are complementary rather than competing activities. My practical experience raises questions that feed my academic research, while my research provides the theoretical foundations and critical perspective that inform my professional practice.
Each continuously nourishes the other. This is precisely what defines my identity as a scholar-practitioner.
Q3: Your research focuses on integrating environmental and societal considerations into asset allocation. What is the single biggest obstacle to mainstream Islamic finance adopting ESG criteria, and how can it be overcome?
The greatest challenge is not simply integrating ESG criteria into Islamic finance, but translating Islamic finance’s own ethical foundations into actual financial practices.
ESG and Islamic finance originate from different normative frameworks. Adding an ESG layer to existing Shariah screening methodologies is therefore insufficient. We must return to the fundamental principles of Islamic economic ethics, particularly the prohibition of harm (la darar wala dirar) and the higher objectives of Shariah (Maqasid al-Sharifah).
In 2009, the International Islamic Fiqh Academy of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation adopted Resolution No. 185 on environmental preservation, explicitly prohibiting activities that damage the environment, disrupt ecological balance or disregard future generations. Environmental protection is therefore not merely an ethical aspiration; it carries a religious obligation.
Yet this requirement has not been systematically incorporated into contemporary Shariah screening. A company may satisfy conventional sectoral and financial criteria while causing substantial environmental harm. This exposes the gap between formal compliance and substantive ethical conformity.
Our current research on Environmental Shariah Screening addresses precisely this issue by deriving operational environmental criteria from Islamic jurisprudence rather than simply importing ESG methodologies.
The challenge is not to make Islamic finance more ESG-compliant, but to make its practices more faithful to its own ethical foundations.
Q4: You were awarded the “Young Broker Prize 2015” for pioneering the first Takaful-oriented brokerage in France. What was the biggest regulatory or cultural challenge you faced in introducing Takaful to the French market?
Interestingly, our main challenge was not regulatory. The French framework did not prevent us from developing and distributing Takaful-oriented solutions.
The real challenge was educating the market, particularly with limited financial resources. We had to introduce an unfamiliar insurance concept, explain its principles and demonstrate its relevance to consumers and financial professionals. This required considerable investment in awareness, trust and distribution capabilities, often without the financial backing available to established insurers.
More than a decade later, we are particularly pleased to have built a community of 5,000 participants in our Takaful fund. Beyond its commercial significance, this demonstrates that mutual assistance and solidarity can provide the foundations for a sustainable insurance community.
Our experience confirms that Shariah compliance alone is insufficient. Successful innovation also requires market education, trust, effective distribution and adequate financial resources.
Q5: You have published over 40 articles in Islamic Finance News and contribute to major French media like Le Monde and La Tribune. How do you translate complex Islamic finance concepts for a mainstream European audience that may be sceptical or unfamiliar?
This is another example of how my academic skills serve the entrepreneur in me. Research teaches us to structure complex ideas, challenge assumptions and communicate with clarity and rigour.
I must confess that I dislike the French term “vulgarization”, because of its association with vulgar. I much prefer “democratization”.
My objective is not to oversimplify Islamic finance, but to make its principles accessible without compromising their intellectual depth.
Democratising knowledge means making it accessible to everyone, not diminishing its value.
Q6: You teach Islamic finance across multiple French universities, including law, finance and insurance programmes. What is the most common misunderstanding about Islamic finance that you encounter among French law and finance students?
One recurring misunderstanding is the belief that Islamic finance should necessarily be free of charge, often justified through the expression fi sabil Allah, acting for the sake of God.
This reflects confusion between philanthropy and commercial activity. I address it through a contractual approach, distinguishing three categories: tabarru’at (gratuitous contracts, including donations), mu’awadat (exchange contracts involving reciprocal consideration) and musharakat (partnership arrangements).
These distinctions demonstrate that Islam encourages generosity and solidarity while fully recognising legitimate commercial activity and profit.
Islamic finance is not about eliminating profit, but ensuring that it arises from legitimate, fair and ethically responsible transactions.
Q7: You hold the Certified Sharia Auditor & Advisor (C.S.A.A) certification alongside French AMF certification. How does your dual qualification help you navigate between Shariah compliance and European regulatory requirements?
I regard these certifications primarily as tools of personal and professional responsibility rather than credentials.
The AMF certification supports my understanding of French regulatory requirements, while the AAOIFI certification helps me uphold the Shariah principles guiding my professional activities.
These are complementary responsibilities. As a practitioner of Islamic finance in Europe, I must ensure that my activities comply with applicable regulations while remaining consistent with the ethical principles I advocate.
Credibility begins with applying to oneself the standards one expects others to respect.
Q8: You are an Associate Researcher at CERGAM and have held teaching positions at KEDGE, ESSCA and other leading institutions. Where do you see the greatest need for Islamic finance education in Europe, undergraduate, postgraduate or executive training?
Both are essential, but they serve complementary purposes.
Executive education is crucial to supporting the entrepreneurial, bottom-up development of Islamic finance in Europe. Rather than relying exclusively on major financial institutions or regulators, entrepreneurs are creating solutions that respond to market needs. They require technical expertise, entrepreneurial capabilities and a solid understanding of Shariah principles.
At undergraduate and postgraduate levels, broader financial education is equally important. Introducing Islamic finance into university curricula can inspire new vocations, prepare future professionals and empower consumers to make informed choices.
Ultimately, Islamic finance education should enable everyone who identifies with its ethical values, regardless of religious affiliation, to understand and access its financial solutions.
Q9: Looking ahead, what is your vision for Takaful and Islamic finance in Europe over the next decade, and what role do you see yourself playing in that development?
Our vision is to establish a fully licensed European Takaful operator, benefiting from the European passport to provide insurance services across the European market.
This would mark a significant transition: from distributing individual Takaful products to building a genuine European Islamic insurance institution, serving participants across borders within a harmonised prudential framework.
We also aspire to develop an ethical and Shariah-compliant investment platform, subject to the relevant authorisations, operating within Europe’s demanding regulatory environment for investor protection and environmental transparency.
Our objective is to demonstrate that Islamic finance can be fully integrated into the European financial ecosystem without compromising its ethical foundations.
After more than a decade of entrepreneurial experience, I believe the next step is to move from pioneering individual solutions to building lasting institutions.
Our ambition is not simply to develop Takaful products in Europe, but to help establish a European Takaful institution.