Sierra Leone
The Banking Act 2019 defines non-interest banking and requires the central bank to issue rules for it, but those rules were still being drafted with IsDB support in 2026. We found no Islamic bank or Islamic window operating in Sierra Leone.
Five checks
Banking rulesFound
The Banking Act 2019 defines non-interest banking as banking in line with Islamic finance, lists non-interest banking among banking services, and in section 53(2) requires the central bank's regulations, rules, directives and guidelines to include rules on non-interest banking. No such detailed regulation was found. IsDB notices of April and May 2026 cover drafting a regulatory framework for Islamic banks, window requirements and Shariah governance.
- “"non-interest banking" means the practice of banking business in conformity with Islamic finance;”
Bank of Sierra Leone (copy hosted on bsl.gov.sl) · 2019 - “regulations, rules directives and guidelines relating to prudential regulations, accounting standards, corporate governance standards, licensing requirements and non-interest banking.”
Bank of Sierra Leone (copy hosted on bsl.gov.sl) · 2019 - “Drafting regulatory framework for Islamic banks”
Islamic Development Bank · 2026-04-20 - “unlocking the potential of a sustainable, modern Islamic banking industry”
Islamic Development Bank · 2026-05-19
Licensed banks and windowsNot checked
- “FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS LICENSED BY THE BANK OF SIERRA LEONE AND THEIR ADDRESSES”
Bank of Sierra Leone
Sukuk issuedNot checked
Takaful (non-interest insurance)Not checked
We found no takaful rule or takaful operator. The Sierra Leone Insurance Commission website could not be reached on 14 November 2026.
Capital market rulesNot checked
We found no Islamic capital-market rule. The website of Sierra Leone's Securities and Exchange Commission could not be reached on 14 November 2026.
Recent developments
- 2026-04-20IsDB published a procurement notice for developing an Islamic finance framework for Sierra Leone's banking sector (submission deadline 20 July 2026). source
- 2026-05-19IsDB called for expressions of interest (project SLE1034, deadline 30 June 2026) for work with the central bank on a modern Islamic banking industry. source
Still open
Points we could not confirm at source yet.
- Is any bank, window or microfinance institution offering Islamic products in Sierra Leone? None found, but the licensed-institution check could not be completed because the securities regulator site was unreachable.
- Has the central bank (now styled Central Bank of Sierra Leone in IsDB notices) issued any non-interest banking regulation since May 2026?
- Section number of the banking-services list that includes non-interest banking could not be read from the two-column PDF.
- Insurance Commission and SEC sites unreachable; takaful and capital-market checks remain open.
Where we searched
- bsl.gov.sl: Legislation page, Banking Act 2019 PDF, home page, Directory of Financial Institutions and its lists of commercial banks, deposit-taking microfinance institutions and capital market firms (no Islamic or non-interest institution named), 2025 Financial Stability Report PDF (no mention of Islamic or non-interest banking)
- isdb.org: April 2026 procurement notice and May 2026 expression of interest for Sierra Leone
- slicom.gov.sl and slicom.org (Insurance Commission): not reachable on 14 Nov 2026
- secsl.gov.sl (Securities and Exchange Commission): not reachable on 14 Nov 2026
- Web searches for Islamic banks or windows, takaful and sukuk in Sierra Leone: none found operating; an AlHuda CIBE press release mentions advisory work with Apex Bank and talks on takaful and sukuk (promotional, undated)