Stella Cox, the managing director of DDCAP Group, sits down with Omar Shaikh of the UKIFC to discuss her experiences as one of the UK’s pioneers in Islamic finance. Stella speaks about her early days at Kleinwort Benson, her friendship with Shariah scholars, her journey founding DDCAP, one of the leading intermediaries in Islamic finance, and what the future holds for Islamic finance in the UK and beyond.

Islamic finance has a long history, and is gathering momentum as a new generation embrace the power of digital technology. However, the important lessons of some of the pioneers of Islamic finance in the UK and beyond risk being forgotten. To preserve these for the next generation, we spoke to some of the key figures who paved the way for Islamic finance in the UK to understand the struggles and successes they experienced on their journeys. In a series of interviews with Stella Cox of DDCAP, M. Iqbal Asaria of Afkar Consulting, Sultan Choudhury, former CEO of Al-Rayan, Shabbir Randeree of Al Baraka and Amjid Ali, formerly of HSBC, to learn from their experiences in commercial and retail Islamic finance.