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This paper aims to determine the role governance plays in the voluntary adoption of Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) Disclosure Standards by Islamic insurance (takaful) operators in the Southeast Asia (SEA) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) regions.

This study uses a sample of 44 takaful operators in the SEA and the GCC regions. While corporate governance (CG) strength is measured by the use of the frequently examined variables of the board of directors and audit committee, Shari’ah governance strength is measured by the characteristics of the Shari’ah Supervisory Board (SSB). Content analysis is used to extract disclosure items from the 2014 annual reports. Agency theory, stakeholder theory and political economy theory are argued to support the hypotheses.

The results show that CG strength has a positive and significant effect on the voluntary adoption of AAOIFI Disclosure Standards by takaful operators, indicating that CG plays an important role in the disclosure of information in the annual reports of takaful operators. However, the results show a lack of association between SSB strength and voluntary adoption of AAOIFI Disclosure Standards. Our results suggest that the SSBs may not be as involved as the other CG mechanisms (such as a board of directors and audit committees) in reviewing financial reports. On another note, the level of the political right and civil liberties has a negative and significant effect on the voluntary adoption of AAOIFI Disclosure Standards, providing an indication that stakeholders in a community with greater freedom tend to be more active in pressuring takaful operators to provide more information to justify their existence in the community. Similar to SSB strength, the legal system is also found to have no significant association with the voluntary adoption of the AAOIFI disclosure standards.

This study provides stakeholders with a tool to evaluate the effectiveness of the governance role in increasing the transparency of takaful operators by examining the governance factors using a self-constructed disclosure index.

Our study is among the first to provide an in-depth analysis of voluntary adoption of AAOIFI Disclosure Standards for takaful operators in these two regions; therefore, this study has implications for regulators and standard setters. The findings of this study are expected to provide information to regulators and standard setters on the role of governance in improving the transparency of takaful operators.

This study aims to develop a comprehensive sustainability performance index tailored for Takaful operators. It integrates Maqasid Al-Shariah’s principles with key stakeholders’ expectations, ensuring a holistic evaluation of sustainability practices.

The index is formulated through a multi-step process, beginning with a thorough literature review to identify pertinent economic, social, environmental and religious indicators. Using a Multi-Attribute Utility Theory approach, the process incorporates expert consultations, stakeholder workshops and the analytical hierarchy process. The framework amalgamates diverse sustainability attributes, focusing on regulatory compliance, financial performance, customer satisfaction, workplace environment and community engagement. The final index is tested with data from various Takaful operators to validate its reliability and robustness.

The newly developed index effectively captures the multifaceted aspects of sustainability specific to Takaful operators, offering a balanced assessment across economic, social, environmental and religious dimensions. Findings suggest that while Takaful operators excel in community welfare and ethical compliance areas, there are notable gaps in integrating environmental and social governance factors. The index successfully highlights these gaps, providing a structured framework to enhance the sustainability practices of Takaful operators. Initial applications of the index reveal significant variability in sustainability performance among Takaful operators, pointing to areas needing improvement.

The development of the index is limited by the availability and quality of data from Takaful operators. Future research should aim to improve data collection methods and expand the index’s application to a broader range of operators.

Takaful operators can use the index as a transparent and objective tool to evaluate and improve their sustainability practices, facilitating better decision-making and strategic planning towards achieving sustainable development goals.

By incorporating Maqasid Al-Shariah and stakeholder perspectives, the index promotes socially responsible and ethically sound business practices within the Takaful industry, aligning with broader societal values and expectations.

This paper introduces the first comprehensive sustainability performance index specifically designed for Takaful operators, integrating religious principles with conventional sustainability metrics. The index provides substantial value for researchers, practitioners and policymakers dedicated to enhancing sustainability in the Islamic finance sector.

This conceptual paper aims to delineate a comprehensive blueprint for the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles within the framework of Takaful operations, guided by the principles of Maqasid al-Shariah. The primary purpose is to establish a robust foundation for the sustainable transformation of Takaful, aligning it with ethical finance and Islamic values.

Using a theoretical research approach, this study delves into the multifaceted dimensions of ESG principles and the principles of Maqasid al-Shariah within the context of Takaful operations. The 17 SDGs/ESG principles and Maqasid al-Shariah are integrated to give a thorough framework for comprehending the disclosure index from western and Islamic ethical viewpoints. The research critically analyses current literature, scholarly works and authoritative sources, drawing inspiration from established approaches. Qualitative content analysis examines and compiles pertinent ideas, and the expert validates the disclosure index. It identifies key convergence, compatibility and divergence points between ESG principles and Maqasid al-Shariah to construct a comprehensive framework for Maqasid-driven ESG integration in Takaful.

The paper presents a well-defined blueprint for Maqasid-driven ESG integration in Takaful, revealing substantial areas of alignment between the two frameworks. This alignment is particularly pronounced in protecting life, religion, intellect, lineage and wealth. The blueprint underscores the potential of harmonising ESG principles with the principles of Maqasid al-Shariah, providing Takaful operators with a roadmap for enhancing their ethical credibility, societal impact and environmental stewardship.

The blueprint outlined in this study opens new avenues for research at the intersection of Islamic ethics, responsible finance and sustainable development and signals the necessity of developing a standardised disclosure index. This index will serve as a vital tool for Takaful operators to transparently communicate their commitment to ethical and sustainable practices, facilitating a deeper understanding of Maqasid-driven ESG integration and bolstering transparency for all stakeholders. Further research into this disclosure index’s practical implementation, empirical validation and strategic implications is encouraged to advance responsible finance within the Takaful industry.

The proposed blueprint provides Takaful operators with a practical guide to align their operations with both ethical finance and Islamic principles. Embracing the principles of responsible governance, societal welfare and environmental sustainability, Takaful operators can enhance their product offerings, attract socially conscious stakeholders and contribute positively to both financial and ethical objectives.

Integrating Maqasid-driven ESG principles in Takaful signifies a commitment to broader social well-being. Through initiatives aimed at safeguarding life, religion, intellect, lineage and wealth, Takaful operators can play a pivotal role in fostering social cohesion, empowering communities and actively contributing to sustainable development goals.

This conceptual paper contributes to the field by presenting a unique blueprint for integrating ESG principles within Takaful operations, guided by Maqasid al-Shariah. The novelty of this approach lies in its holistic perspective on ethical finance, aligning Islamic values with contemporary global ethical imperatives. The blueprint offered here represents an original framework for responsible Takaful practices that resonate with evolving ethical standards and the enduring principles of Islamic finance.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects and challenges of the new amendment of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) 9 in Malaysia from the perspectives of regulators, auditors, accountants and academicians in Malaysian Islamic financial institutions. For the purpose of this study, this paper focuses on the recognition criteria perspective of the standard, which provides a basic understanding of the financial reporting framework.

Using 10 series of semi-structured interviews undertaken with key individuals in regulatory bodies, audit companies, full-fledged Malaysian Islamic Banks and Malaysian higher learning institutions.

The findings revealed that IFRS 9 strengthens International Accounting Standards 39 in terms of relevance and reliability, recognition of financial instruments and identification of business models. Nevertheless, Islamic financial institutions face challenges in terms of a faithful representation of fair value, substance over form, identification of financial instruments before recognition criteria and the extent of the role of risk management in reducing manipulation in identifying business models.

This study provides implications to regulators and standard setters in Malaysia to enhance the quality of financial reporting framework and practices in Islamic financial institutions in this country using IFRS 9.

Practically, the findings of this study can be used by the regulators to resolve the issues that arise in adopting IFRS 9 among Islamic financial institutions to further enhance financial reporting quality.

The findings of this study are very important to ensure that the adoption of IFRS among Islamic financial institutions are in line with Sharīʿah principles. To date, no studies have been done on the challenges of adopting IFRS 9 among Islamic financial institutions in Malaysia.

This paper aims to examine the extent of the Shari’a corporate governance disclosure in the annual report of Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) in Malaysia to determine the significant differences in this disclosure between the local and foreign-owned IFIs, small and large size IFIs and IFIs belong to Islamic and conventional holding companies.

All 16 IFIs in Malaysia were selected to analyse the extent of disclosure in their annual reports on issues related to Shari’a corporate governance. For this purpose, an index of Shari’a corporate governance disclosure for IFIs was created based on adapting Sulaiman et al. (2015). The index consists of 127 items classified into 14 dimensions. The scoring of the disclosed items is binary, where a score of “1” if disclosed and “0” if it was not disclosed in the annual report.

The result shows no significant differences in the Shari’a corporate governance disclosure between the local and foreign-owned IFIs, small and large size IFIs and IFIs belonging to Islamic and conventional holding companies. However, further examination shows that there was a significant difference in the disclosure of the risk management committee dimension between the large and small IFIs and investment account holders dimension between the conventional and Islamic holding companies.

The results provide new emerging evidence that deviates from many prior empirical research studies, which document the domination of Islamic-based IFIs in the corporate governance practices, as compared with their conventional financial institutions that venture into Islamic finance. This study, however, was conducted on only 16 IFIs in a one-year period, i.e. 2013. Future research should consider data from a larger number of IFIs that involve a number of countries with more than one year of data to have a better understanding of the extent of Shari’a corporate governance disclosure.

This study provides an indicator to the stakeholders of Islamic finance that the Islamic-based IFIs and conventional IFIs are equal and cannot be differentiated based on the Shari’a corporate governance disclosure. For Islamic-based IFIs, as a pioneer in Islamic banking and finance industry, they need to take more efforts in adopting the Shari’a governance framework issued by the Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM), namely, the Shari’a review, audit and risk management.

This study is original, as it includes the latest requirements by the Shari’a governance framework issued by the BNM, namely, the Shari’a review, audit, risk management and research functions in its research instrument. In addition, this research also scrutinised the disclosure in detail of all the dimensions constructed in the governance index.

The paper aims to contribute to the discussion on Shari'ah governance systems by examining the extent of disclosure on the Shari'ah Supervisory Board (SSB) as well as the content of the Board's report in the annual reports of 23 Islamic banks in Malaysia and Indonesia. The paper also investigates the disclosures about zakat (Islamic levy).

The study is a cross-sectional analysis of annual report disclosures in the year 2009. The paper uses both disclosure indices and content analysis to measure the extent of disclosures about SSB and zakat. The paper also tests hypotheses examining the relationship between SSB characteristics and the extent of the SSB-related and zakat disclosures.

The results indicate that SSB-related and zakat disclosures are still limited, with only four banks disclosing more than half of the SSB Index. What is noticeable is the low level of disclosure on sensitive matters. Among the factors associated with SSB-related disclosures are cross-membership with other SSBs and the expertise of SSB members in accounting, banking, economics or finance

Originality/value

The study is the first to provide an in-depth analysis of Shari'ah disclosures in Malaysian and Indonesian Islamic banks. As such, this study makes an important contribution to the debate on Shari'ah governance systems and has implications for regulators and standard setters. The Malaysian and Indonesian standard setters could play an important role in ascertaining appropriate disclosure requirements relating to the SSB as the study suggests that the level of disclosure is less than expected. The evidence also suggests the need for mandatory enforcement of standards on these types of disclosures.

This study aims to address the noted gap in comprehensive overviews detailing the developmental trajectory of Islamic finance (IF) as an interdisciplinary academic field.

The study introduces a unique approach using the combined methodologies of co-word analysis and main path analysis (MPA) by examining a broad collection of IF research articles.

The investigation identifies dominant themes and foundational works that have influenced the IF discipline. The data reveals prominent areas such as Shariah governance, financial resilience, ethical dimensions and customer-centric frameworks. The MPA offers detailed insights, narrating a journey from the foundational principles of IF to its current challenges and opportunities. This journey covers harmonizing religious beliefs with contemporary financial models, changes in regulatory landscapes and the continuous effort to align with broader socioeconomic aspirations. Emerging areas of interest include using new technologies in IF, standardizing global Islamic banking and assessing its socioeconomic effects on broader populations.

This study represents a pioneering effort to map out and deepen the understanding of the IF field, highlighting its dynamic evolution and suggesting potential avenues for future academic exploration.

This study aims to examine the joint effect of accounting background and cross-membership of Islamic Supervisory Board (ISB) members on bank investment efficiency.

This study uses data collected from 36 Islamic banks across 15 countries globally, spanning the period from 2012 to 2021. This research uses an ordinary least squares regression and a comprehensive set of endogeneity and robustness tests.

The findings show a negative relationship between the accounting background of ISB members and investment efficiency. However, when ISB members with accounting backgrounds also have ISB cross-memberships, the banks exhibit high investment efficiency. These results suggest that ISB cross-membership plays a crucial role in facilitating Islamic banks’ access to timely information on investment opportunities. This enables ISB members with accounting expertise to thoroughly assess the benefits and risks associated with their investment prospects. These findings imply that ISB members with accounting backgrounds and cross-memberships have greater motivation and thoughtful considerations for making better investment decisions. Consequently, Islamic banks are better positioned to undertake high profitable investment projects, which enhance their investment efficiency.

The current study holds immense value for Islamic bank management in their selection of ISB members who possess an accounting background and cross-membership.

This study delves into a comprehensive investigation of the proficiency, underlying principles and unique characteristics exhibited by ISB members with an accounting background. Moreover, this study acknowledges the burgeoning global prominence of Islamic banks.

This study aims to examine how digitalization affects the work efficiency of the Shariah Supervisory Board (SSB) in Islamic banks.

This study uses panel data analysis of annual report disclosures over the past 10 years. The authors have selected 79 Islamic banks for the period ranging from 2012 to 2021. The criteria for SSB efficiency used in this research are disclosure of Zakat and disclosure in the SSB report.

The econometric results show that digitalization has a positive effect on improving the work efficiency of the SSB in Islamic banks. Accordingly, the authors provide evidence that the higher the bank's digital engagement, the higher the quality of the SSB.

The findings highlight the need to improve the current understanding of SSB structures and governance mechanisms that can better assist Islamic banks in engaging in effective compliance with recent governance and accounting reforms. Moreover, Islamic banks are the most capable and appropriate to implement and activate digitalization because they are based on a vital root calling for development if there are executives believing in it, as well as legislation supporting and serving them.

This paper aims to investigate the compliance of Islamic banks (IBs) with the AAOIFI standard No. 7, in Middle East and North Africa area during the period 2010-2014. The authors seek to identify, among the 15 countries and 72 banks, those which conform more to this standard. The level of compliance is expected to be more stringent in countries where AAOIFI standards are made mandatory.

The paper uses the unweighted disclosure method which measures the corporate social report disclosure (CSRD) score of a bank as additive. Each country and bank are assessed according to two obligatory and voluntary CSRDs.

The empirical results indicate that even though the global disclosure index has been improved over the observation period, it has remained relatively low. The results also allowed us to see that the global, mandatory and voluntary societal disclosures vary according to the country and banks. Further, it has been seen that banks allow more attention to the mandatory disclosure recommendations of AAOIFI Governance Standard No. 7, in comparison with the voluntary CSRD.

One limitation of this study is that the sample is restricted to only the Islamic banking sector. Future research could include other Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) such as insurance companies. Second, the study could be extended to other countries to better control the religious system and cultural effects. Because in our modern era, traditional laws in the Muslim world have been widely replaced by statutes inspired by European models, the authors suggest then to apply a new classification that separates, for instance, countries that rely on an Islamic model from those with a western model, and national banks from those allied with western banks. Finally, the paper’s data collection relies solely on annual reports and does not include publications from bank sites. Future research could consider all these limitations. Another possible avenue could examine the determinants of such disclosure level.

Almost no study has been limited to the text of the AOIFFI. This detail is important for some countries where the AAOIFI standards are mandatory.

The findings may be of interest to shareholders and all those who deal with IBs that have religious expectations.

Despite the fact that most studies investigated compliance of IB Sharia law, almost no study has been limited to the text of the AOIFFI. This detail is important for some countries where the AAOIFI standards are mandatory. The findings may be of interest to shareholders and all those who deal with IBs that have religious expectations.