Welcome to Tuum Talks Episode #13 – Islamic Banking at a Crossroads: The Case for Change
Recorded Live: Thursday, June 12, 2025
Host: Javed Rafi, Director of Solutions Consulting MEA, Tuum
Guest: Callum Burgess, Director of Digital Partnerships, DDCAP Group
Is Islamic banking ready for reinvention?
In this episode of Tuum Talks, Javed Rafi sits down with DDCAP Group’s Callum Burgess to explore why Islamic banking is facing a pivotal inflection point — one that calls not just for digital evolution, but for true transformation.
Islamic banking has long been rooted in values-based finance, but values alone are no longer enough. Customers now expect seamless digital experiences, rapid access, and transparency — all while maintaining strict Shariah compliance.
Together, Javed and Callum unpack the key forces shaping this moment and how Islamic financial institutions can evolve without compromise.
Why Watch?
- The transformation imperative: Discover why Islamic banks must modernize now to stay relevant amid shifting demographics and rising digital expectations.
- Redefining the customer experience: Learn how today’s digital-native consumers are reshaping what “modern Islamic banking” means in practice.
- Modernizing with integrity: Explore how automation, AI, and cloud infrastructure can be harnessed to drive efficiency while preserving Shariah principles.
- Scalable innovation in action: Hear how platform-based models — like Tuum + DDCAP — are unlocking new possibilities for compliant, scalable growth.
- The open banking opportunity: Understand how API ecosystems are poised to redefine the Islamic finance landscape — and why embracing this shift is vital.
- Real-world perspective: Gain unique insight into how DDCAP is actively supporting Islamic banks on their transformation journeys.
This is not about choosing between tradition and innovation — it’s about harmonizing both to build the future of Islamic banking.
Watch the full episode below and reach out to learn how Tuum can help your institution modernize at scale — without compromising your values.
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Tuum Talks Episode #13 – Islamic Banking at a Crossroads: The Case for Change
Javed: [00:00:13]
Everyone, good morning, good evening, From whichever location you’re trying to connect. Let’s give a few minutes for a couple of more participants to join and then we begin the session.
Perfect. I see we have a sizable number. We could probably begin with a round of introductions. Callum, would you like to go first?
Callum: [00:01:14]
Yeah, sure. Thank you Javed, and thank you to yourself and the rest of the team at Tuum for inviting me on to the webinar today, a real privilege to be here and looking forward to our discussion. My name’s Callum Burgess, I’m Joint Head of Digital Partnerships and Business Solutions at DDCAP. I’ve been with the company for the last 10 years or so. DDCAP is a market intermediary and financial technology solutions provider to the Sharia compliant financial markets. We’ve been established as a company since 1998. One of our original founders, Stella Cox, is still with us as our managing director, along with our deputy CEO, Lawrence Oliver. We’re a long established company serving the Sharia compliant financial markets. Today we do that through our main technology stack, which is an online asset facilitation platform called Ethos.
Javed: [00:02:19]
Thank you. Thank you, Callum. Hello everyone. I’m Javed Rafi. I’m part of the solution consulting team at Tuum. 13 years in Europe, 5 years been focusing in Middle East purely in financial services. Tuum as a platform is a four generation SaaS platform, that caters to both conventional and Islamic banking, be it Islamic deposits, Islamic financing. As a tech stack we are a API based cloud native, that makes it easy in terms of deployment models and embedding it into any existing tech stack. Today for our conversation, we have nine different topics; it would be more of a conversation based approach. Any questions you have, please feel free to post it in the Q&A. What we could do is we could spend the first 30 minutes focusing on the nine major topics that we plan to discuss today, and then the last 15 minutes could be purely for the Q&A session. Thank you everyone for joining. Here we go. Let’s get started with the first topic. Islamic banking has long been grounded in ethical and inclusive finance, but is that all enough to meet today’s demands? What is driving the urgent need for change? Callum, your thoughts.
Callum: [00:03:38]
Yes, thanks Javed. Great question to start off with. I think throughout the decade that I’ve been at DDCAP, we’ve seen several pivotal changes and transformations across the global Islamic financial markets. Although we’ve seen multiple changes through different times, I think that a lot of those changes have predominantly focused on traditional Islamic banks and Islamic financial institutions pursuing digital transformations of their product portfolios. That’s largely been in response to the growing demands of what’s becoming an increasingly digital native industry. I think we’ve seen digitization has taken an approach across different aspects of banking. Some of that’s been around enhancements to the bank’s operational efficiencies, some of that’s been around enhancements to product, and also new product development. I think in terms of what we do at DDCAP, the focus that’s been taken in regards to digital first approach amongst Islamic finance community, it’s enabled us as a company to really increase our footprint both in our core traditional markets, but also in new and emerging markets. We’ve been able to use our technologies such as the ethos platform, to support some of the newer, innovative products that we’ve seen come to fruition in the Islamic banking markets over the last few years.
I think from a DDCAP point of view, we’ve seen a transformation take place whereby traditional Islamic banking products that were transacted on a manual basis have now gone over to digital platforms and we’ve been able to, like I said, use our technology to support that digital journey of those products.
The shift that we’ve seen towards digitization amongst the institutions, it’s largely been to support the increase of a digital native industry. That’s been driven by the consumer base really, who are now in demand of digital native banking products and financial products and services. I think if you look at the GCC for example, most GCC countries have young populations. That younger generation of consumers, they’re digitally savvy, they want access to banking products and financial services products that are the same, that are digital first or modern. But at the same time, in terms of Sharia compliance, they want to be able to use modern digital products that at the same time aren’t going to compromise their beliefs, their values, in terms of Islamic banking as a whole, digital products that aren’t going to compromise the Sharia integrity of Islamic finance.
We’re seeing a shift now where Islamic banks are looking to meet the demands of these new consumer bases whilst maintaining the integrity of their products. In that space, we’re seeing some interesting innovations at the moment, and it is pleasing to see that whilst the sector is looking to innovate, it’s looking to do so in a way that maintains integrity.
Javed: [00:07:34]
I absolutely agree. Consumer focused market is what it’s all about because time and again, Islamic banks have been playing it safe in terms of the products. Because any Islamic bank that we see across the globe, be it APAC, Middle East, or even the banks that are coming up in Europe and UK, they primarily focus on the traditional Islamic savings, deposits and finance. But then looking at the market where there’s a lot of curiosity amongst the Gen Z’s and Millennials, where they would like to understand more about Islamic banking, but at the same time they would prefer a way where they would be able to digitally be part of the experience. That’s typically driving the Islamic banks towards innovation.
Then also over the period of time, these traditional banks have accumulated so much of legacy tech stack that also limits their Sharia experts to come up with innovative ideas, because any innovative ideas they come up with always faces a roadblock where it would take a longer period of time or a lot of resources in order to achieve the goal.
That’s where the new FinTechs, because I see at least one FinTech in every market, be it Malaysia, UK or Middle East, where these FinTechs are focusing on digital savvy products, be it Islamic finance or Islamic deposits. That is also causing a concern for the traditional players, where they would like to retain their market share. I believe it’s a combination like you mentioned, both consumer-driven need for change, as well as the new age FinTechs that are entering the market to make a difference. Absolutely, I agree with you.
Having discussed what’s demanding the change now, moving to the next question, which is again focused on the customers. As customer expectations evolve, what does a modern Islamic banking need to deliver in terms of experience, access and transparency? What would be the customer’s expectations here?
Callum: [00:09:36]
I think that’s a really important question. It’s also quite a complex one, and it doesn’t have a single definitive answer. Consumer expectations around modern Islamic banking can vary widely, and that’s really dependent on what modern Islamic banking means to that consumer base. I think one thing that I do believe is clear around modern Islamic banking is that despite modernizing Sharia compliant products, banking products, financial services products, Islamic banks still need to do what they say on the label, if you like. They still need to operate within the principles of Islamic finance. No matter how far we get down the road with innovation and new technologies, any products labeled as Sharia compliant, it needs to remain firmly rooted in the principles of Islamic finance.
I think we then get into an area where it’s important that whilst we try and innovate, innovation doesn’t come at the expense of integrity. We need to maintain those core values of ethical interest-free finance, and we need to ensure that those values continue to underpin the products that are available in this space. I think the potential flip side of that is we potentially don’t want to get into an area where the challenges of innovating within Sharia compliant frameworks holds back any progress. Globally we’re seeing financial industries evolve Islamic and conventional, and so the Shariah compliant banking industry needs to continue to move with those trends, continue its evolution.
I think much of the solution in that probably lies in more of a collective effort across the industry to try and strike the right balance between ethical principles and the cutting edge innovation side. I think as well, another key aspect of innovation within Islamic banking is we need to innovate for strong use cases. I think it is important that the industry as a whole avoids innovating for novelty, if you like. I think we need to innovate through what’s being required from consumer bases, and what do the consumers need? There’s some good data out there that can tell the industry that. I think that collection of data and understanding those consumer requirements and what the consumers want at the moment is really important.
We need to innovate in response to current and existing needs. I think some of the guiding questions around that should be, what problems are we looking to solve with innovation within Islamic banking, and what processes can we improve for the benefit of the consumers of the Islamic banks?
Javed: [00:13:01]
Absolutely. Then two points that crossed my mind when we talk about how Islamic banks can modernize, one would be purpose-driven finance, and the other one would be hyper-personalization. Because Gen Z’s, Millennials, or everyone who is curious or willing to be part of the Islamic banking, always think that their investments are ethical. Now, one way how banks can modernize is by being transparent on where exactly is this amount being invested. If I open a savings account and invest X amount of pounds or dirhams, for example, if I have an insight or clarity on where the bank is investing, on what ethical purpose, or it could be a goal-based investing where there could be different buckets or different forms, that would then motivate me to be a part of Islamic banking. That would be one focus point.
The second would be hyper-personalization, because these days I see opening an Islamic savings account or applying for an Islamic finance is still consumer driven. There’s no usage of data analytics or any form of tech from the bank side, where they could start recommending let’s say different types of savings plans, different types of deposits, or probably a short term finance product to a customer based on their current and past behavior and also the future commitments that may arise as part of standing instructions, direct debits, future expenses, et cetera, from an SME perspective.
I definitely agree with you. Here the two main factors modern banks could look at or Islamic banks trying to modernize could focus on, is hyper-personalization, and how do we effectively use the data?
Callum: [00:14:55]
Yeah, I definitely agree with that. Javed, you touched on a couple of important points as well. I think a lot of the innovation we see currently is in the lending space. In regards to consumer banking, the deposit sector within Islamic finance also has a lot to offer. I know at DDCAP we support some really innovative savings accounts products, some card products, Qard Hasan. There’s a lot going on in the deposits side of things as well.
The other thing you mentioned a moment ago was what we’re seeing from some of the FinTechs currently. I think it’s really important to take note of that. In the Islamic FinTech market, especially in the UK at the minute, we are seeing FinTechs who are demonstrating that innovation in Islamic finance can be both ethically grounded and technologically advanced. In the UK we’ve got quite a thriving scene of Islamic FinTechs at the minute. We’ve got the likes of wirehead, nester, kestrel, stride up, offer, fiber, and so many others. Whilst each of those are unique in the products that they offer and their products are different, I think what we learn from all of those institutions is we can get a grip on this growing understanding that modern Islamic banking must deliver a digital experience that whilst being smart and convenient, is also grounded in trust in ethics and in Islamic values.
As a whole modern Islamic finance, Islamic banking, it’s not solely about offering digitally enhanced financial products. It’s really about building a financial ecosystem that is going to resonate with a faith conscious, digitally savvy consumer base.
Javed: [00:17:04]
Absolutely. Also you touched upon a point earlier where you spoke about innovation within the Islamic principles. That’s also one of the questions I have next. Where do we draw the line between innovation and outreach? How can Islamic banks preserve the integrity of Sharia principles and still be able to adopt transformative technologies, like automating various different Sharia calculations, usage of cloud and AI? What would be your thoughts here?
Callum: [00:17:35]
In that regard, I think innovative technologies such as cloud, AI, they’re out there in the market, they’re available, and that’s not restricted to Islamic financial institutions. I think that when we’re talking about innovation technologies and Sharia compliant banking, it’s important that the technologies are deployed in ways that preserve the integrity of the Sharia compliant products. As we’ve already mentioned, Islamic banking needs access to these technologies. It needs the technologies in order to advance with the wider financial markets. But whilst it does that, it needs to stay aligned with principles of Islamic finance, Sharia compliancy, even when adopting these new technologies.
What we need to see is value driven approaches from Islamic financial institutions. I think collaboration amongst market participants in deployment of new technologies is going to be important. But having said that, the kind of standardization in the Islamic financial markets is something that comes up frequently. It is difficult to have a one-size-fits-all across all jurisdictions. But within domestic markets, the adoption of technology based around common standards within that market would be a good place to begin.
In terms of adopting new technologies, AI, cloud, whatever it is that the banks are looking at, they’re also going to need to, as we’ve already touched on, adopt technologies that are relevant for their consumer base. There’s not going to be any point for them in adopting a technology that’s maybe on trend at the minute but isn’t going to be relevant to the consumer base that they’re trying to serve. I think that’s an important point.
Also from my perspective, what would be good to see is the alignment on the technical front and a Sharia compliant front from an earlier stage. We need to see more collaboration from technical stakeholders and Sharia compliance stakeholders, regulators, at an earlier stage in development lifecycle of new technologies. Because the two sets of stakeholders are going to have a lot to offer each other, and it’s far easier and more efficient to collaborate on an entire journey than trying to retrofit a developed product.
Javed: [00:20:47]
Absolutely. Again, technology needs to be an enabler, not a compromise. Then what we often see is that typically when it comes to launching an Islamic product, Sharia experts are sometimes bypassed in the form of product design.
To give an instance, how Islamic experts from Tuum and DDCAP came together for the Islamic buy now pay later, because in a conventional buy now pay later the problem statement is you’re charging the consumer an interest rate and various different types of fees for the product they purchase. Now, if I transform it into an Islamic buy now pay later, what most of the current buy now pay later players do is they basically do not charge any fees or any profit rate from the consumers. They term it as Islamic buy now pay later, which is not Islamic in its true essence. But yes, technically it is correct because you’re not charging anything from the consumers.
Now this problem statement, when it was handed over to experts at DDCAP and Tuum, we together came up with an end-to-end setup where institutions can launch Islamic buy now pay later cards to their consumers, so that the consumers would still be able to go through the lifecycle of buy now pay later, which is paying the down payment at the time of making a purchase, and then there is a profit rate and fees associated with it. This at end of the day is an Islamic product that follows the Tabarook model where there is a buy/sell trade, using the prebuilt integration that Tuum has with DDCAP.
This is again one classic example where if the problem statement is handed over to the Islamic experts without any technology limitations, we could definitely have an end-to-end solution that’s more advanced and aligns with the Islamic principles in a better way, rather than compromising different principles. This again is a very good example on how technology can be an enabler and not a limitation or a compromise to different FinTechs and banks.
Callum: [00:22:52]
Yeah, absolutely. I think the buy now pay later Sharia compliance space is a really good example. Within DDCAP at the moment, we’re seeing lots of demand to support that product for institutions.
Around your whole point there, Javed, I think what might be important in future is the development of a talent pool where these knowledge bases crossover, a sector does exist where we’ve got talent with Sharia expertise and technical expertise. Growing that talent pool and sector on a wider basis is going to be really beneficial to the market. The earlier that we can align technical and Sharia integrity approaches on product development, then the better, to be honest.
Javed: [00:23:44]
Sure. Speaking about technology, that leads to my next question. What are the biggest operational challenges that Islamic banks face?
Here we could think about the challenges that traditional Islamic banks as well as the modern FinTechs who would like to innovate in the world of Islamic banking, what are their operational challenges, and how can more flexibility and platform-based models help them overcome these challenges?
Callum: [00:24:12]
There are certainly challenges as there are across the whole of the banking landscape today. I think as well as the challenges, Islamic banking is actually uniquely positioned to lead, not just in ethical finance, but in innovation and sustainability also. A lot of the principles, they’re not just Muslim consumers want from their banking products today, all consumers want transparency. Strong ethical practices already exist within Islamic finance and Islamic banks.
The potential for the industry and the institutions within it to lead is obvious. But of course there are still challenges. From the participants within Islamic banking, we still see a heavy reliance on legacy banking systems. That’s something that I think has improved recently. I think you touched on it earlier, Javed as well. Those technological challenges are there. It would be good to see some of the traditional Islamic banks start to migrate away from those legacy banking systems.
We tend to see over utilization or heavy reliance on legacy systems in markets that have long established Islamic banking industries. I think the reason for that is often these legacy systems have been adopted at an earlier time and they’ve been retrofitted to accommodate the principles of Islamic finance, and a lot of those have been able to meet the demands that were being placed on their institutions at the time they were retrofitted. The problem we’re seeing now is that because that retrofit was done when the market was at a certain position at a certain time, it hasn’t really provided those institutions with flexibility to adapt to modern banking processes, which I think we are seeing has led to a lot of the institutions’ products falling short of supporting the demands of today’s modern digital first market.
Yourselves at Tuum are a great example of a modern NextGen cloud native provider who offers Islamic banking solutions real compliant solutions. Tuum can definitely help to change the approach within the market. The cloud native approach that you’ve got at Tuum in regards to Islamic Banking Suite, it gives institutions the ability to adopt true functional core banking transformation. Unlike what we see from legacy systems, the modular out-of-the-box solution that’s available through Tuum can bring institutions faster implementation, reduce need for customer development, and also can simplify delivery. Even for us at DDCAP prior to becoming a partner of to, I think that was obvious to us the steps that to were taking to innovate within the Islamic financial markets.
For those listening who are not aware of the DDCAP/Tuum partnership, Tuum and DDCAP have a technology integration which enables fully automated tariff processing. We’ve partnered and integrated to innovate what has traditionally been a highly manual, resource intensive commodity trading process. The actual innovation between the two modular Islamic banking suite and the DDCAP Ethos platform is going to allow Islamic banks or Islamic financial institutions to execute tariff transactions through seamlessly and in full compliance with each institution’s Sharia requirements.
The integration with Ethos by DDCAP will allow the asset facilitation support services to seamlessly flow through the Tuum’s Islamic Banking Suite. I think that’s important because it means that the type of collaboration we’ve created reduces operational friction, streamlines compliance, and it lowers overheads for the banks. The message we’re getting from a lot of our clients now is end-to-end processes that are available through one central system, is very much the way to go. We’re really pleased and excited at DDCAP that we’ve been able to produce something that meets that demand with Tuum.
Javed: [00:29:11]
Yeah. Definitely when we talk about how can Tuum/DDCAP be a technology enabler, now be it a legacy or a traditional bank or a new edge FinTech, our ultimate goal is always to have rapid innovation cycles.
If we look at rapid innovation cycle, now if I am a traditional Islamic bank, the preferred approach or the recommended approach would be progressive modernization, where the idea is not to replace the existing architecture but instead to compliment it, where if the idea is to launch an Islamic savings or an Islamic term deposits or an Islamic finance, the agenda here would be to modernize in a progressive way, be it to Islamic deposits or an Islamic financing, which can independently work since it’s microservice based, makes it easy for Tuum as a platform to deploy those specific microservices that can be added or plugged into your existing architecture. That enables you to quickly launch products while you retain the existing mobile application, KYC, credit decisioning, et cetera. That would be more of a complimenting approach where you are progressively modernizing your core. That would be from a traditional Islamic bank perspective.
The new edge FinTechs, the CTOs and head of engineering may hit me for saying this, of course the modern technologists would like to build everything in-house. But then one good lesson that we could learn from the giants, be it Google or Facebook, is that they too value at end of the day being a product company, where if they see that they cannot innovate rapidly, they go acquire platforms, they go subscribe to platforms, and use those platforms that could act as a catalyst to make them move faster.
As a modern FinTech, I would suggest everyone ask this question, am I reinventing the wheel? If yes, is this worth the time and effort that’s going to take for me to reinvent? Or should I go for a platform-based approach where I plug in a platform like Tuum, I want to launch an Islamic buy now pay later or personal finance or an Islamic savings, and then launch the product, get the market feedback, focus more on the customer experience, credit decision, usage of data to focus more on the hyper-personalization, because that’s where technologies and modern FinTechs can innovate? Those would be the two approaches I would suggest; one for the traditional Islamic banks and the other one for modern FinTechs.
Callum: [00:31:58]
Yes, I think completely agree, Javed. I think it’s a really refreshing approach for Tuum, bringing to the core banking side of things in the compliant market. The approaches you suggest I think are completely sensible and definitely the way to go.
Javed: [00:32:20]
Absolutely. Being conscious of time, I’ll quickly go further one of the topics, and then we can get on Q&A. If we have sufficient time, we could come back to these questions.
Here the question for Callum. DDCAP has played a pivotal role in facilitating Sharia compliant transactions globally. How do you see yourself evolve as Islamic banks modernize their tech stack and the ways of operating?
Callum: [00:32:49]
At DDCAP, our core business focus has remained consistent since our establishment in 1998. But what has really evolved over time is how we deliver that business and the value propositions that we offer to our clients. We’ve embraced change really well at DDCAP. We’ve moved from once being a very traditional financial services provider, to being now what we consider ourselves to be a fully-fledged FinTech.
Today with that in mind, we not only ensure that the product we’re offering to our customers are commercially compelling, but we also prioritize the technology that supports them. We’re extremely committed to providing innovative digital first and modern solutions that enhance how our clients access the DDCAP products. That’s mainly the Ethos platform. Looking ahead to the future, we’re still 100% committed to supporting the traditional Islamic banks and financial institutions. Our commitment to those institutions remains extremely strong. The relationships we have in that sector are very well established, and we’ll continue to serve those institutions in the most innovative ways possible.
The evolution of how we serve that customer base will very much be informed directly by our clients themselves and the demands that they’re seeing from their consumers. That’s how we’ll proceed on that basis.
In recent times, one of our most transformative developments at DDCAP has been the growth of our Ethos platform. The technology behind Ethos has significantly expanded our presence in the Islamic consumer banking space globally. Today we support a broad spectrum of Sharia compliant products across different markets, from digital lending, P2P lending, microfinance, Sharia compliant BNPL to CASA products, card products, credit card products, alternative finance products, personal finance, and really a lot more.
It’s the technology that we’ve developed within ETHOS that’s enabled us to do that. A lot of the products I’ve just mentioned traditionally previously, it would’ve been very laborious and difficult to transact them manually. But now we have the technology stack that we do, we can automate those products. For most of our clients, what that’s allowed us to do, it’s allowed us to become a seamless part of their own digital transformations. As our clients have modernized and digitally transformed, we’ve been able to join them in that journey, which means they haven’t had to worry about how they’re going to change the business they do with us, because we’ve taken care of that for them. We’ve done that really because we recognize that the way that most of these products are being transacted on the side, we don’t see day-to-day side between the bank and their customers is changing rapidly, and that’s why we are continually adapting our technology and integrating into the wider digital journeys of our clients. Ultimately that’s why we were so keen to partner with Tuum, because we see that as a next evolution of DDCAP offering.
As I’ve said already, what we’re hearing from our clients is very clear, integrated, end-to-end solutions, that reduce complexity and operational overheads, are really valuable. Our partnership with Tuum perfectly exemplifies how we are responding to that, how other providers have responded to that.
Finally, a critical area for us at DDCAP is automation of our products and services. Within Ethos we’ve got a robust suite of APIs that allow our clients to automate product workflows and integrate their products directly with Ethos. That, as I said, has helped our clients to drive their wider digital transformation initiatives.
Javed: [00:37:16]
Thank you. Thank you, Callum. As a testament to Tuum/ DDCAP partnership, we do have a question here. The question from Gary, is the trading behind Tabarook buy now pay later fully automated, or does it still require manual interference?
Here the answer is it’s an end-to-end integration that makes the flow seamless. The moment a loan contract or a finance contract, be it Islamic Finance or a buy now pay later, is booked in Tuum, the overall end-to-end process is fully automated until the funds get dispersed. This also includes the communication with DDCAP, the buy/sell trade, executing, all the different stages of the Tabarook before the disbursement happens. The answer to Gary is yes. That was one question.
The next one for Callum. If a conventional bank wants to launch an Islamic window, how can it do this without disrupting the rest of the infrastructure?
Callum: [00:38:19]
Yeah, it is a great question. For me the answer is quite straightforward and an obvious one. The conventional bank needs to take a modular approach. Modular solutions providers, again such as Tuum, they’ve enabled this kind of development and to happen in a lot more of a seamless manner. If you’re a conventional bank looking to launch a window, the adoption of modular core banking technologies, it means you don’t necessarily have to move away from the systems and solutions that are supporting your conventional banking model. What you can do is you can use modular technology to compliment what you’re doing in regards to creating an Islamic window.
I think that’s definitely the way to go. The modular technologies, they’re going to enable the banks to be adaptive. If the requirements of that window changes, the window widens, new products are rolled out through it. The cloud native modular approach, it’s really going to compliment that by enabling that progression and adaption and not hindering it at all.
Javed: [00:39:41]
Absolutely. To give you a real life example, let’s say a traditional Islamic bank wants to launch new flavors of Islamic savings products. Now one way of doing this, be it savings or deposits, Tuum specific microservices specific to other use case, could be savings or deposit could be deployed. Now, the funds that are accumulated in the savings pool of all these savings accounts or deposit accounts can then be fed into your existing core architecture, through which you would be able to use these funds to finance various different activities and generate profit.
Here again, touching upon Callum’s point, modular architecture is what stands out when it comes to enabling traditional Islamic banks to focus on modernization, where you’re not looking at procuring or having a complete new tech stack, it’s more about picking and choosing the specific modules or specific microservices, adding it to your existing architecture, so that your overall architecture becomes more like an enabler; so that when your Sharia team or your product team wants to launch a new Islamic financing or a new Islamic deposits, they may not acquire an entire monolith. Instead, go for a modular approach where those specific microservices of Tuum could then be deployed.
That would be the way, where you start small, you focus on a particular product, make it a success, show it to the C-level that it’s in fact generating returns and it’s a quick win as well as a long-term strategy, and slowly start adding all the relevant microservices. Here a modular approach is going to be key for traditional banks who would like to modernize their code. That would be one of the answers.
The next one, does Tuum offer specific cards, credit card, debit card services for Islamic specific banking? Of course, yes. Both for the Islamic debit cards as well as credit cards, we have the features. If we look at the various different modules, Tuum covers wallets, current accounts, savings accounts, deposits, various forms of Islamic financing. Tuum also has a card management system, which makes it easy for Tuum to be able to add new features to make the card management system Islamic specific. Be it a debit card product, a gift card or a credit card, it could be configured in an Islamic way using the Tuum platform. That would be the answer.
We also have an interesting text from Vadim, who’s representing the Irish Islamic community. Definitely, yes, we would like to understand more about any specific requirements. We are already, both Tuum and DDCAP, have a presence in entire Europe as well as UK, it covers Ireland as well. We do understand the requirements, the regulations, as well as all the very specific nitty-gritties. We could definitely connect offline to understand more about your specific requirements and discuss them in detail.
As we come to the end of our session, we have the last two minutes. Any closing comments from you, Callum?
Callum: [00:43:08]
Just to reiterate a lot of what we’ve spoken about, currently it’s not a case that we aren’t seeing innovation within Islamic banking. I think we are. We’re seeing strong innovations and really good products being rolled out. I think what’s important now is that any of us who are within the Islamic finance sector, we do our utmost to continue to enable and promote that growth of innovation.
Javed, we’ve obviously looked to do that with our partnership, and hopefully we’ve got some very exciting things to come from that. The message I think is innovate, look to provide the most modern products available, but innovate with integrity.
Javed: [00:44:04]
Absolutely. On that note, thank you, Callum. It was quite informative. I hope all the participants enjoyed this session and was informative for you as well. Any questions, please feel free to drop your questions. We would also like to connect with you offline. Could be discussing a specific use case, or if you would like to see a demonstration of the end-to-end prebuilt integration between Tuum and DDCAP, we would also be glad to walk you through the entire process to show you how it’s completely automated end-to-end. That makes it very easy for you to have a plug-and-play experience in terms of launching Islamic products. Definitely looking forward to a lot of conversations as a follow up to this session.
Thank you all and I wish you all a great day. Thank you, Callum. Have a good day.
Callum: [00:44:58]
Yes, thanks Javed, and thanks everyone for listening.
Javed: [00:45:01]
Thank you.