Abstract
The debate on ethical practices in Islamic bank marketing has grown in recent years. Although
the number of studies examining Islamic banking in Bangladesh has increased, there remains
a significant gap in studies focusing on the implementation of Islamic marketing principles and
Shari’ah objectives in the marketing strategies of Islamic banks. This study endeavours to
address this deficiency by identifying the fundamental aspects of Islamic marketing ethics and
their practices within the Islamic banking industry. Therefore, this research aims to critically
explore and evaluate the marketing strategy developed and employed by the Islamic banking
industry in Bangladesh through the lens of Maqasid al-Shari’ah, assessing various dimensions
of Islamic bank marketing.
In order to fulfil the aim, the researcher used multiple qualitative methods. In the first phase
of data collection, the study used content analysis of the annual reports of seven full-fledged
Islamic banks for ten years from 2013 to 2022 to generate the necessary data to apply to the
constructed maqasid framework. The research adopted Najjar’s concept of maqasid al
Shari’ah to construct and evaluate a framework aligned with the objective of critical
understanding of the Shari’ah marketing disclosure practices of Islamic banks. The empirical
findings from the maqasid al-Shari’ah index revealed that the Islamic banking industry in
Bangladesh lacks achievements in performing disclosures based on Shari’ah objectives. The
overall performance indicates that IBs mainly focused on Shari’ah objectives of self, faith, and
posterity rather than stakeholding, social entity, intellect and ecology. The findings reflected
that the dimensions related to social development, employee training, creating awareness,
product development, and environmental and ethical aspects are significantly low in the
disclosures of Islamic Banks (IBs) in Bangladesh. Additionally, the researcher conducted semi
structured interviews with senior executives of Islamic banks in Bangladesh to evaluate various
aspects of their marketing policy based on the findings of the first empirical chapter. The
interview data were analysed thematically using NVivo Plus 12. The findings pointed to a
significant difference between the theory and practice of marketing activities within Islamic
banks in Bangladesh. The research findings suggest that Islamic banks in Bangladesh use
religious identity and Islamic symbolism as the foundation of their marketing strategies.
Furthermore, the study revealed that the awareness and knowledge of Islamic finance on the
supply side are significantly low. The industry shows less enthusiasm for product innovation,
research and development, and promotional activities based on Maqasid al-Shari’ah.
The research advocates Islamic bank marketers to incorporate gharar (uncertainty) free
marketing processes and emphasise al-adl and al-ihsan (social welfare), ethics, transparency
and Tayyibat (goodness) in marketing activities. The research makes an essential theoretical
contribution to identifying two new elements of Islamic mix: ‘pledge’ and ‘probity, emphasising
the use of the religion of Islam as a resource rather than merely a tool for promoting Islamic
banking products and services. It suggests that utilising Islam as a marketing source can create
opportunities for Islamic banks to achieve Shari’ah objectives, guided by Islamic marketing
ethics, and deliver products as promised. However, relying solely on religion as a marketing
tool limits the broader perspective of Islamic marketing principles. Furthermore, the research
provides practical suggestions for marketers to incorporate core values such as goodness,
harmlessness, truthfulness, and accuracy into their marketing strategy to reach broader
customer segments and fulfil their commitments. The research has achieved its aim by
contributing to the existing literature by highlighting ethical practices in Islamic bank
marketing, addressing gaps in the literature, and proposing a conceptual framework for
marketers based on Shari’ah objectives and Islamic marketing principles.