Sustainability has been discussed in four pillars, namely human, social, economic, and environmental. These pillars ensure that people meet their needs today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. Sustainable development, particularly finance, helps nations while addressing challenges in economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental protection. It plays a crucial role in achieving sustainability by directing funds into projects that support development and incorporating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into business and investment decisions. This approach is designed to provide long-term benefits to clients and the broader society, which is aligned with the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) initiative introduced a fresh approach through the introduction of Value-Based Intermediation (VBI). VBI highlights a guide to a resilient, equitable recovery in Malaysia's economic and social systems. It enhances Islamic banks' offerings, providing impactful and rewarding services. VBI and sustainable finance prioritise ethical values and long-term benefits, ensuring development meets current needs without compromising future generations. Thus, this paper aims to discuss the strategy of VBI and its prospective implementation from a Shariah perspective, and the integration between the VBI and the sustainable finance towards the inclusion outcomes as a novel approach to achieving sustainable development. Furthermore, this paper examines how Islamic banks apply VBI in addressing the current financial challenge. This paper is essential for the industry in responding to the strategic paper issued by the BNM, which aims to maximise the benefits for the community and shareholders.
Abdullah, N. A. I. N., & Haron, R. (2022). ESG reporting practices among Islamic banks: a global perspective. IIUM Law Journal, 30(S2), 01-36.
Ahmad, S. M. & Mahadi, N. F. (2020). Covid-19: Reinforcing the Impact of Islamic Banking through Value-Based Intermediation. Proceedings paper, 3rd UUM International Islamic Business Management Conference 2020 (IBMC 2020), 110.
Ahmed, H. M., Omar, A. H., & Mohamed, M. A. (2023). Islamic Banks as a Value-Based Intermediation. TIJARI International Journal of Islamic Economics, Business and Entrepreneurship, 3(1).
Ahmed, H., Mohieldin, M., Verbeek, J., & Aboulmagd, F. (2015). On the sustainable development goals and the role of Islamic finance. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, (7266).
Aizenman, J., Jinjarak, Y., Nguyen, H., & Noy, I. (2021). The political economy of the COVID-19 fiscal stimulus packages of 2020 (No. w29360). National Bureau of Economic Research.
Al Muhairi, M., & Nobanee, H. (2019). Sustainable financial management. Available at SSRN 3472417.
Al Ahbabi, A. R., & Nobanee, H. (2019). Conceptual building of sustainable financial management & sustainable financial growth. Available at SSRN 3472313.
Akpan, J. U., Oluwagbade, O. I., & Owonifari, V. I. (2023). Integrated Reporting: Enhancing Stakeholder Engagement and Performance through Sustainability Accounting in Nigeria. International Journal of Research (IJR), 10(7), 1-10.
Aras, G. (2019). Finance, Sustainability, and Business Legitimacy. In: Rendtorff, J. (eds) Handbook of Business Legitimacy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68845-9_77-1
BNM. (2017). Overview of financial inclusion in Malaysia. https://www.bnm.gov.my/documents/20124/6458991/ar2021_en_wb3.pdf.
BNM (2018) Value-based Intermediation: Strengthening the Roles and Impact of Islamic Finance.https://www.bnm.gov.my/documents/20124/761682/Strategy+Paper+on+VBI.pdf/b299fc38-0728-eca6-40ee-023fc584265e?t=1581907679482.
BNM (2018). Implementation Guide for Value-based Intermediation. https://www.bnm.gov.my/documents/20124/761682/Implementation+Guide+for+Value-based+Intermediation.pdf.
BNM (2021). Annual report. https://www.bnm.gov.my/documents/20124/6458991/ar2021_en_wb3.pdf
BNM (2017) Financial Stability and Payment Systems Report. https://www.bnm.gov.my/documents/20124/856368/cp04.pdf/dfed8274-30cb-9ab1-4e30-ab90983ddc06?t=1585713825904.
Cunha, F. A. F. de S., Meira, E., & Orsato, R. J. (2021). Sustainable finance and investment: Review and research agenda. Business Strategy and the Environment. doi:10.1002/bse.2842 10.1002/bse.2842.
Dariah, A. R., Salleh, M. S., & Shafiai, H. M. (2016). A new approach for sustainable development goals in Islamic perspective. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 219, 159-166.
Dias, G. F. (2022). Sustainability and Sustainable Finance: A Regulator’s Perspective and Beyond. In The Palgrave Handbook of ESG and Corporate Governance (pp. 217-229). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
European Commission (2023). https://finance.ec.europa.eu/sustainable-finance/overview-sustainable-finance_en
Fatemi, A. M., & Fooladi, I. J. (2013). Sustainable finance: A new paradigm. Global Finance Journal, 24(2), 101-113.
Freudenreich, B., Ludeke-Freund, F. and Schaltegger, S. (2020), € “A stakeholder theory perspective on business models: value creation for sustainability”, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 166 No. 1, pp. 3-18
Gereffi, G. (2020). What does the COVID-19 pandemic teach us about global value chains? The case of medical supplies. Journal of International Business Policy, 3, 287-301.
Financial sustainability: measurement and empirical evidence. Journal of Business Economics, 92(3), 467-516.
Gökta?, V. A. H. I. T., & CHOWDURY, S. R. H. (2019). The role of sustainable development goals on environmental sustainability: a discourse from an islamic perspective. Avrasya Sosyal Ve Ekonomi Ara?t?rmalar? Dergisi, 6(5), 279-295.
Gulluscio, C. (2020). Legitimacy Theory. In: Idowu, S., Schmidpeter, R., Capaldi, N., Zu, L., Del Baldo, M., Abreu, R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Sustainable Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02006-4_175-1.
Gundogdu, A. S. (2018). An inquiry into Islamic finance from the perspective of sustainable development goals. European Journal of Sustainable Development, 7(4), 381-381.
Hassan, A., & Syafri Harahap, S. (2010). Exploring corporate social responsibility disclosure: the case of Islamic banks. International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management, 3(3), 203-227.
Hossain, M. M. (2019). Achieving Sustainable Development Goals: Poverty Alleviation from an Islamic perspective. In International Conference on Religion, Governance and Sustainable Development (ICRGD2019). Kuala Lumpur, October (pp. 16-17).
Ibrahim, S. S., Noor, A. H. M., Arsyad, R., Ismail, S. (2019). Enhancing Strategic CSR for Sustainability Through Moderating Effect of Waqf Orientation: A Solution Through CSR-VBI Canvas. In: Sidek, N., Said, R., Hasan, W. (eds) Islamic Development Management. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7584-2_8.
Ismail, A. Y., Hameed, L. B. M., Suhaimi, A. F. M., Jamaludin, N. I., & Shahimi, S. (2020). Value based intermediation and interconnection of sustainable development goals in Islamic banking framework. International Journal of Islamic Economics and Finance Research, 3(1 July), 45-56.
Jaakkola, E. (2020). Designing conceptual articles: four approaches. AMS Rev 10, 18–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13162-020-00161-0.
Jaiwant, S. V., Kureethara, J. V. (2023). Green Finance and Fintech: Toward a More Sustainable Financial System. In: Naifar, N., Elsayed, A. (eds) Green Finance Instruments, FinTech, and Investment Strategies. Sustainable Finance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-29031-2_12.
Jensen, D., Gould, S., Mohammad Nurunnabi (2022). Islamic Sustainable Finance: Opportunities for Donors and PAOs to Deliver Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.ifac.org/knowledge-gateway/developing-accountancy-profession/discussion/islamic-sustainable.
Khan, F., & Haneef, M. A. (2022). Religious responses to sustainable development goals: An islamic perspective. Journal of Islamic Monetary Economics and Finance, 8(2), 161-180.
Kunhibava, S., Ling, S. T. Y., & Ruslan, M. K. (2018). Sustainable financing and enhancing the role of Islamic Banks in Malaysia. Arab Law Quarterly, 32(2), 129-157.
Kumar, S., Sharma, D., Rao, S., Lim, W. M., & Mangla, S. K. (2022). Past, present, and future of sustainable finance: insights from big data analytics through machine learning of scholarly research. Annals of Operations Research, 1-44.
Liu, C., & Wu, S. S. (2023). Green finance, sustainability disclosure and economic implications. Fulbright Review of Economics and Policy, (ahead-of-print).
Loong, Y. S., & Wan Usamah, W. A. (2022). The Malaysian Economy and COVID-19: Policies and Responses from January 2020–April 2021. In United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva, Switzerlannd.
Ma’ruf, A., Mahomed, Z., & Mohamad, S. (2021). Sustainable finance and a Shar?’analysis of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. Islamic Finance and Sustainable Development: A Sustainable Economic Framework for Muslim and Non-Muslim Countries, 193-217.
Ministry of Finance (2021). Malaysia’s Fiscal Policy Supports Strategy for Economic Recovery and Growth. Press Release. https://www.mof.gov.my/portal/en/news/press-release/malaysia-s-fiscal-policy-supports-strategy-for-economic-recovery-and-growth.
Mohamad Ariff, A., Abd Majid, N., Kamarudin, K. A., Zainul Abidin, A. F., & Muhmad, S. N. (2023). Corporate ESG performance, Shariah-compliant status and cash holdings. Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research.
Mohamed, M. (2022). Facilitating SDGs with Islamic Finance (Part 2) Value-Based Intermediation: Championing the Social Finance Agenda in Malaysia https://www.ifac.org/knowledge-gateway/developing-accountancy-profession/discussion/facilitating-sdgs-islamic-finance-part-2-value-based-intermediation-championing-social-finance.
OECD. (2024). Environmental social and governance (ESG) investing - OECD. https://www.oecd.org/finance/esg-investing.htm.
OECD. (2020). How Islamic finance contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals(oecd-ilibrary.org). https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/ac1480ca-en.pdf?expires=1707459538&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=CA23EEDF4A6DDC7DC95604E98D60CD0A.
Pedrini, M., & Ferri, L. M. (2019). Stakeholder management: a systematic literature review. Corporate Governance: The International Journal of Business in Society, 19(1), 44-59.
Pisani, F., & Russo, G. (2021). Sustainable finance and COVID-19: The reaction of ESG funds to the 2020 crisis. Sustainability, 13(23), 13253.
Quatrini, S. (2021). Challenges and opportunities to scale up sustainable finance after the COVID-19 crisis: Lessons and promising innovations from science and practice. Ecosystem Services, 48, 101240.
Rabbani, M. R., Ali, M. A., Ur Rahiman, H., Atif, M., Zulfikar, Z. & Naseem, Y. (2021). The Response of Islamic Financial Service to the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Open Social Innovation of the Financial System. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(1), 85.
Raimi, L., Abdur-Rauf, I. A., & Ashafa, S. A. (2024). Does Islamic sustainable finance support sustainable development goals to avert financial risk in the management of Islamic finance products? A critical literature review. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 17(6), 236.
Roshayani, A., Ruhaini, M., Ramesh, N., & Idora, B. (2018). Value-based intermediation for islamic banking institutions directed towards sustainable development goals. The International Revue of Entrepreneurial Finance, 1(1).
Saleem, A, Daragmenh, A., Zahid, R. A., Sagi, J. (2023). Financial intermediation through risk sharing vs non-risk sharing contracts, role of credit risk, and sustainable production: evidence from leading countries in Islamic finance. Environmental Development Sustainability.
Sharma, G. D., Verma, M., Shahbaz, M., Gupta, M., & Chopra, R. (2022). Transitioning green finance from theory to practice for renewable energy development. Renewable Energy, 195, 554-565.
Shahrom, Z. R., Kunhibava, S. (2023). Malaysia’s Sustainable Banking Regulatory Framework: Value-Based Intermediation and Climate Change Principle-Based Taxonomy.
Slamet, A. (2020). Islamic Finance and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Journal of Islamic Economic Literatures, 1(1).
Naifar, N., & Elsayed, A. (Eds.). (2023). Green Finance Instruments, FinTech, and Investment Strategies: Sustainable Portfolio Management in the Post-COVID Era. Springer Nature.Thompson, S. (2021). Green and sustainable finance: Principles and practice (Vol. 6). Kogan Page Publishers.
Tok, E., & Yesuf, A. J. (2022). Embedding Value-Based Principles in the Culture of Islamic Banks to Enhance Their Sustainability, Resilience, and Social Impact. Economic and Business Aspects of Sustainability, 14(2), 916.
United Nation (2018). Unlocking SDG Financing: Findings from Early Adopters. https://unsdg.un.org/resources/unlocking-sdg-financing-findings-early-adopters
Vanishvili, M., & Katsadze, I. (2022). Bank financing of green economy: review of modern research. Scientific Collection «InterConf+», (18 (95)), 120-143.
Vos, R., Glauber, J., Hernández, M., & Laborde, D. (2022). 10. COVID-19 and food inflation scares. 2YEARS, 64.
Mahyudin, W. A. T., & Rosman, R. (2020). Value-based intermediation and realisation of Maqasid Al-Shariah: Issues and challenges for islamic banks in Malaysia. Advanced International Journal of Banking, Accounting and Finance, 5(2), 34-44.
Valentinov, V. (2023), "Sustainability and stakeholder theory: a processual perspective", Kybernetes, Vol. 52 No. 13, pp. 61-77. https://doi.org/10.1108/K-05-2023-0819).
Wang, Y., Jiang, S., Wu, C., Cai, X., & Wang, F. (2022). Impact of the Global Megatrends, COVID-19, and Digital Economy on Professional Career Management Transformation in Asian Countries. Sustainability, 14(17), 10981.
Weber, O. (2016). Impact investing. In Routledge handbook of social and sustainable finance (pp. 85-101). Routledge.
World Economy Forum, 2021. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/07/the-future-of-sustainable-finance/-finance-opportunities-donors-and-paos-deliver-sustainable-development-goals.
Ye, J., & Dela, E. (2023). The Effect of Green Investment and Green Financing on Sustainable Business Performance of Foreign Chemical Industries Operating in Indonesia: The Mediating Role of Corporate Social Responsibility. Sustainability, 15(14), 11218.
Yu, Z., Razzaq, A., Rehman, A., Shah, A., Jameel, K., & Mor, R. S. (2021). Disruption in global supply chain and socio-economic shocks: a lesson from COVID-19 for sustainable production and consumption. Operations Management Research, 1-16.
Zoona, M. (2022). Integration of ESG Factors Into the Credit Risk Assessment Process–A Framework for Islamic Banks (Doctoral dissertation, Hamad Bin Khalifa University (Qatar)).
Zain, S. N. M., Siti Fatimah Mohd Kassim, & Shafii, Z. (2025). Vital Roles of Value-Based Intermediation within Sustainable Finance Framework: A Theory Synthesis and Model Approaches. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 15(9), 223–244.
Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s)
Published by Knowledge Words Publications (www.kwpublications.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode