Evaluation of Factors Influencing Youth towards Islamic Banking in Pakistan

The purpose of this particular study is to evaluate the factors that influence the young customers (18 to 24 years age) in selection Islamic banking in Pakistan. Islamic banking is emerging vastly in Pakistan due to its majority of Muslim population. Both qualitative and quantitative methods have been chosen to conduct this research. In this respect, questionnaire survey was carried out, involving 100 customers of three Islamic banks of Pakistan, and 5 interviews have been conducted with authorities of Islamic banking. The results have clearly shown that factors influencing male and female respondents are not similar. It has been concluded that female respondents do not have much awareness and knowledge about basic principles of Islamic Banking. It might be due to the fact that they are not involved directly in businesses. Male respondents were of the view that they use Islamic Banking services because of religious perceptions, cost effectiveness and quality of services. Main factor for selecting Islamic banks is Religious motivation of youth. It has been recommended that Islamic banks need to offer attractive returns, and awareness programs must be initiated to educate customers about the characteristics of Islamic banking.