AUSTRALIA - BANKING - Aussie Islamic Finance, A Mirage

wsj.com - Don’t expect a surge in Australian Islamic finance even when the country’s government finally releases a widely expected proposal to change tax guidelines, opening up the local market to more of these type of products. Still relatively obscure here, the major Australian banks offer only a small number of retail investors watered down versions of the products that prohibit the payment of interest in compliance with Islamic laws. (source)