Muslim Bank to Open in Dearborn

October 16, 2000

Source: The Detroit News

On October 16, 2000, The Detroit News reported that "metro Detroit's devout Muslim community will have its own bank soon. Founders of the Amana Bank, which means 'trust' in Arabic, plan to open the financial institution in east Dearborn. Although the bank would serve customers of diverse backgrounds, its officers plan to offer a mortgage program catering to devout Muslims who have religious beliefs that forbid them from paying interest on loans or even collecting interest on savings...Ned Fawaz, a Dearborn businessman who is the new bank's chairman, said the financial institution is the first of its kind in Metro Detroit, which has about 300,000 residents of Arabic descent, the largest such bloc in the country. 'If you follow a certain set of religious rules, you'd like to live by them,' he said. Fawaz plans to lend Muslim customers more money than needed to buy their homes, with the extra amount covering the future interest charges. That way, the borrower can be seen as simply repaying the full amount of the loan. The fledgling bank awaits approval from state bank regulators for that unusual approach. Amana has been chartered and needs to supply a list of its directors to the state before opening, which is tentatively planned for late December...Imad Hamad, a leader of the Arab-American community in Dearborn, welcomed the planned bank. 'Any gesture that's sensitive to a certain culture is good,' he said."