Best Islamic bank: Standard Chartered Saadiq
Standard Chartered Saadiq stands out as Bangladesh’s best Islamic bank in 2025, combining unique market positioning with strong execution across growth, digital and customer adoption metrics. As the only multi-national bank offering full-scale Islamic banking across retail, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), corporate and financial institutions, the franchise leverages global expertise alongside more than two decades of local presence to deliver a comprehensive Shariah-compliant ecosystem.
The bank has demonstrated clear momentum in scaling Islamic banking within its broader franchise. Islamic products are increasingly central to customer acquisition, with 45%-plus of new-to-bank retail customers now opting for Islamic solutions, rising to as high as 100% for certain SME products. This acceleration is further reflected in product penetration, with more than 30% of new-to-bank deposit customers acquired under Islamic banking in 2025, alongside 70% of mortgages and 25% of credit cards being booked as Islamic, highlighting strong cross-product adoption and relevance.
Digital adoption is a key differentiator underpinning this growth. More than 72% of clients are actively conducting transactions through digital channels, while 58% completed at least one financial transaction via e-banking within a three-month period. Saadiq’s integration of Shariah-compliant solutions into advanced digital infrastructure, including real-time onboarding, paperless financing, Islamic digital payments via Bangla QR and the country’s first digital cross-border letter of credit (LC), has been instrumental in driving scale and customer engagement.
This performance reinforces Saadiq’s leadership in delivering a scalable, digitally enabled and fully integrated Islamic banking proposition, positioning it as the clear benchmark for Islamic finance in Bangladesh.
Best Islamic digital bank: Standard Chartered Saadiq
Standard Chartered Saadiq combined advanced digital execution and robust Shariah governance to lead Bangladesh’s digital Islamic banking industry. As the only multi-national bank offering Islamic banking across all client segments in the country, Standard Chartered Saadiq has leveraged technology to deepen access and accelerate adoption of Shariah‑compliant products in a highly competitive market.
Digital capability sits at the centre of Saadiq’s operating model. Standard Chartered was the first bank in Bangladesh to execute a fully digital, end‑to‑end cross‑border letter of credit, reinforcing its leadership in paperless trade and Islamic transaction banking. Across retail and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) banking, clients benefit from real‑time digital onboarding, e‑know your customer (KYC) and fully paperless product booking, enabling accounts to be opened in minutes without manual intervention. These capabilities have driven strong client engagement, with more than two-thirds of customers now active on digital channels and over half completing financial transactions online within a three‑month period.
Digital leadership has translated directly into commercial momentum. Islamic products account for half of new‑to‑bank retail customers, rising to 100% for certain SME offerings. In 2025, around two-thirds of mortgage bookings and a quarter of credit-card originations were Islamic, reflecting the effectiveness of Saadiq’s digital‑first distribution model.
By pairing market‑leading digital infrastructure with a comprehensive Shariah‑compliant product suite and global governance standards, Standard Chartered Saadiq clearly merits recognition as Bangladesh’s best Islamic digital bank.
Best Islamic project finance deal: IDLC Investments
Akij Bakers BDT1.88 billion green Islamic syndicated financing
The best Islamic project finance deal in Bangladesh in 2025 was a BDT1.88 billion Shariah-compliant green syndicated financing for Akij Bakers Limited, arranged by IDLC Investments with Midland Bank, Mutual Trust Bank and Pubali Bank.
The financing funds energy-efficient machinery imports and installation, and is expected to drive around 40% average capacity growth – with some lines up to 100% – and approximately 20% revenue growth.
This deal was executed against a difficult political and macroeconomic backdrop, which had caused slowing capital market activity and constrained access to long-tenor, cost-efficient financing. Despite these challenges, IDLC secured Akij Baker a six-year, fixed-profile facility at a cost of 5%; a conventional, non-syndicated structure would have cost closer to 14%.
The financing was the first in Bangladesh to combine ijarah muntahia bittamleek (IMBT, a lease-to-own Islamic finance structure) and hire purchase under shirkatul melk (HPSM, a co-ownership Islamic finance structure) syndication with green refinance eligibility for import-linked machinery, setting a precedent for future Islamic green industrial financings in the market. It was also the largest green Islamic syndicated financing in Bangladesh to date.
