LONDON , England ( CNN ) -- With irresponsible banking practices taking the blame for bringing about the global economic crisis , there has been a surge of interest in Islamic finance . Islamic finance is estimated to be worth $ 700 billion and has been growing by 15 to 20 percent per year . Now , a slew of academic courses are springing up to meet the demand of those wanting to break into an expanding market . According to ratings agency Moody 's , the global Islamic finance sector is worth $ 700 billion and has the potential to be worth $ 4 trillion . What 's more , the ethical principles underpinning Islamic finance are seen by some as offering a more sustainable alternative to profit-oriented conventional banking . The result is that academic institutions are lining up to offer formal training in the area . `` There is a huge demand for Islamic finance courses now , so large that it 's difficult to cope with , '' Professor Habib Ahmed , Sharjah chair in the school of government and international affairs at Durham University , England , told CNN . Durham will launch a Masters degree in Islamic finance from October , becoming one of a number of European institutions to offer Islamic finance programs . `` Islamic finance has been growing by 15 to 20 percent per year for some time and there is a lot of interest at the moment . People are looking for alternatives after the economic crisis . '' `` Islamic economists believe that if the principles of Islamic finance were followed the crisis would n't have happened . We are seeing a lot of non-Muslim countries , including the UK , France , Japan , Hong Kong and Singapore encouraging Islamic finance , '' he said . There are many differences between Islamic and conventional banking practices . One fundamental difference is that Islamic banks do not charge interest . Rather than borrowers and lenders , the system is based on buyers and sellers . `` Conventional banking is biased to the seller . Islamic finance is trying to level the ethics between the two parties , '' Aly Khorshid , an Islamic finance scholar who writes for Islamic Banking and Finance magazine , told CNN . `` People think the Islamic system is based on faith , but it 's based on justice . The system is based on justice for the two parties and how you get to the justice is extracted from Islamic faith , '' he said . Khorshid said that there are similarities between `` ethical investment '' schemes and Islamic finance , in that the Islamic system does not allow investment that harms people or the environment . He credits the rapid growth of the Islamic finance sector on the success of `` sukuk '' -- Islamic bonds . In the West , banks including Lloyds TSB , HSBC , Deutsche Bank and Citibank all offer Islamic finance products , catering to a niche market of Muslim borrowers . But while Islamic banks allow Muslims to take advantage of financial services that are consistent with their religious beliefs , it is the ethics underpinning Islamic finance that are attracting the interest of conventional finance institutions keen to learn lessons from the banking crisis . Although Islamic banks have suffered from the global repercussions of the economic downturn , they emerged largely unscathed from the initial banking meltdown that brought about that financial turmoil . Ahmed told CNN that is because Islamic banks are not allowed to deal in mortgage-backed securities or credit-default swaps , two of the practices accused of helping bring about the banking crisis . Khorshid said that although it 's too early to say if Islamic finance has dealt with economic downturn better than conventional finance , the Islamic system has many more layers of risk assessment and management , which could help protect it from the problems afflicting conventional banks . But the growth of Islamic finance has brought its own problems . Critics say some banks use Islamic finance to package what are essentially conventional products . `` Islamic banks are also driven by the profit motive and sometimes that can dominate the ethics , '' Ahmed told CNN . While Europe is catching up with the demand for these banking products , the U.S. is lagging behind . Ahmed says that regulatory and legal changes are needed for Islamic finance to grow in the U.S. , but he adds there are signs that Canada may become a North American center for Islamic finance . The lack of Islamic finance services in the U.S. is reflected in a relative lack of demand for Islamic finance courses , but in the UK there is the opposite problem . With students coming from Asia and the Middle East to get the qualifications that will help them take advantage of the Islamic finance boom , Ahmed says it is difficult for universities to find qualified teaching staff . `` Most people with PhDs in Islamic finance are working in the industry , making a lot of money , '' he told CNN . He added that Islamic finance products have the potential to appeal to the non-Muslims market , pointing out that in Malaysia the majority of customers for Islamic banks are n't Muslims . `` If people look at the principles they 'll see something beneficial in terms of economics , rather than just religious reasons . It 's a type of ethical finance that may be attractive to a lot of people . ''
There is an increase in demand for academic courses in Islamic finance . Some believe Islamic finance principles would have avoided banking crisis . Islamic banks do not charge interest or deal in mortgage-backed securities . They are more likely to lend money directly to individuals and small businesses, rather than through large corporations that can be easily taken over by a hostile government.