The Central Bank of Morocco has announced on June 30 it received 10 applications for approvals from local Islamic banks, both local and foreign. The Bank added that the first banks will start operating by the end of 2016.

“On 29 June 2016, ten applications were submitted, both by Moroccan banks and foreign finance groups,” Lhassane Benhalima, responsible for Banking supervision at Bank Al Maghrib told a press conference.

“Local banks include Crédit Agricole, Attijariwafa Bank, Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP), Crédit Immobilier et Hotelier (CIH) and BMCE,” he added without revealing the foreign institutions.

According to a recent survey conducted by Reuters, the Islamic Research and Training Institute (IDG Group), consulting firm Zawya, and 98% of Morocco’s population said they were interested in Islamic banking services. 

The survey, which sampled 800 people ranging between 18 and 55 years, show that 84% of Morocco’s population interested in Islamic banking services want services that are cheaper than traditional ones. However, while 43% of population surveyed said they would open accounts in Islamic banks, even if their services happen to be more expensive than traditional ones, 30% said they would only use the new services.