Financialization of the economy and income inequality in selected OIC and OECD countries

Income inequality is a serious problem confronting not only the developed world but also developing countries. Recently, financialization has been one of the culprits identified in literature as one of the cause of income inequality. This book offers the only detailed presentation of the how financialization aided the spread of income inequality in Organization of Islamic Cooperation, OIC countries. Finance has taking a center stage in the affairs of most developing economies, surpassing the real sector of the economy. The result is the creation of an indebted society in which people are comfortable with financing their financial needs through credit. This creates a debt laden society that is trapped in the cycle of debt.

This book represents a comprehensive and indispensable source for students, practitioners and the general public at large. It presents data which shows the buildup of debt and the rising income inequality in Muslim countries. It includes discussion of the rise in rentier income, financialization of everyday life, decline in physical capital accumulation and deregulation of the financial sector. The book therefore, proffers solutions on how Muslim countries can come out of the present economic problem facing them. The promotion and adoption of Islamic principles, which promotes risk sharing based contracts as against debt based transaction is the way to go. When financial contracts are based on the principles of risk sharing, any gains from economic activities get to be shared equitably. Hence, not only capital owners get to enjoy the benefit from the income derived from investments, but rather, all parties that partake in the contract.

Distinguished by its clarity and readability as it is written in a very easy to understand language, it is an important reference work for any concerned individual interested on the recent causes of income inequality in Muslim World.

Auteur

Dr Fatima Muhammad Abdulkarim is working at the Department of Economics at the Federal University Dutse, Jigawa State Nigeria.

Abbas Mirakhor joined INCEIF in 2010 as Distinguished Scholar and the First Holder of INCEIF's Chair in Islamic Finance. His research interests include conventional and Islamic economics and finance. He is a graduate of the Kansas State University, USA, where he received his Bachelor, Master and PhD Degrees in Economics. In 1968, he started his academic career with University of Alabama, USA. Mirakhor has worked as a professor of economics at the University of Alabama, Alabama A&M University, and the Florida Institute of Technology. In 1984, he joined the IMF in Washington DC as an economist. He spent 24 years with the IMF, serving as the organisation's Executive Director and Dean of the Executive Board, retiring in 2008.

Dr. Baharom Abdulhamid is Associate Professor at the INCEIF Global University of Islamic Finance Lorong Universiti in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.