MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Applications Open for $100k “Islamic Microfinance Challenge 2013: Beyond Murabaha”

The second Islamic Microfinance Challenge is now accepting applications from Islamic financial services providers that offer Sharia-compliant products that are not based on the “murabaha” concept of “cost plus markup”. The contest, themed “Beyond Murabaha” for 2013, is sponsored by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), Islamic Development Bank (ISDB), Al Baraka Banking Group, and Triple Jump. The contest is also supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The winner of the contest will be awarded a grant of USD 100,000. The deadline for submitting applications is January 31, 2014, and the application form can be found at the following address: http://www.cgap.org/sites/default/files/islamic_mf_challenge_1.pdf