Governance of profit and loss sharing financing in achieving socio-economic justice

Purpose - This study aims to explore the governance practices of profit and loss sharing (PLS) financing in connection to the socio-economic development objective of the Islamic financial institutions (IFIs). Design/methodology/approach - The study context included IFIs from Yogyakarta, Indonesia. A two-stage research methodology was used. In the first stage, top ten IFIs – three Islamic commercial banks, three Islamic rural banks and four Islamic micro finance institutions – were considered for in-depth interviews. Formal interview protocol was followed to record and transcribe interviews. In the second stage, a questionnaire survey considered 26 IFIs. Unit of measurement was individuals working at the mid and top level from the selected organisations. Findings - The governance process of providing and managing PLS financing involves several critical factors, such as the financing duration, instalment timing, contract approval and cost, basis of sharing, risk management, customer empowerment and Sharīʿah compliance. Contrary to the existing belief, the authors found that PLS financing is primarily available for shorter period of time (three years) and it is unavailable for start-ups. Also, newer IFIs rely less on PLS financing than the older IFIs. In addition to worrying about the higher risk of return, IFIs considered government regulation on PLS to be tighter in terms of provision and rescheduling. Research limitations/implications - This study is limited to investigating IFIs in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. This limitation is covered by taking samples from three types of IFIs. Practical implications - For IFI practitioners, these findings are expected to improve their confidence in undertaking more progressive efforts in adopting governance policies that contribute to greater socio-economic justice. Social implications - If the governance good practices are implemented by all IFIs, a higher degree of social welfare and customer awareness can be achieved. Originality/value - Across all types of IFIs, this study’s results confirm that PLS is less preferred for long-term and start-up financing. These findings should be the ingredients to push research on PLS further, as these findings grossly violate the theory. Fulfilling these gaps could strengthen the nexus between PLS and socio-economic justice.