A sharia bank could open in the Phillipines

A Muslim group is seeking Filipino government approval for opening a sharia bank on the island country:

The Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFund) has applied for a license to operate an Islamic bank in the Philippines.

The bank, to be called “Ibdaa Microfinance Bank,” is expected to be operational within the year.

In a primer, AGFund said the bank’s objective is to help reduce poverty in the Philippines mainly by offering business loans to low-income earners.

AGFund is a regional institution based in Saudi Arabia. It pursues a development goal for various countries, particularly those confronted with a significant poverty problem.

Sharia only serves to make poverty situations worse, and if the Filipino government approves this, they'll only make things bad in many ways for the island.