QIB (UK) is a Gulf private bank transplanted to Grosvenor Street, Mayfair: discreet, relationship-driven, wholly Shariah compliant since 2008, and backed by Qatar Islamic Bank, Qatar's largest Islamic bank. It publishes a deposit rate card that is quietly interesting, holds one genuine UK rate record, and tells you almost nothing about anything else. This guide covers what is published, what is not, the Raisin back door for ordinary savers, and the honest verdict on who should walk through the Mayfair front door. All figures verified August 6, 2026; QIB's own rate sheet carries an as-at date of 26 March 2026.
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The published shelf
| Product | Rate (as at 26 Mar 2026) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Current Account | None (transaction account) | Private banking gateway; tariff not published |
| Instant Access Savings | 1.75% (GBP and USD) | Profit monthly, quarterly or annually; GBP/USD/EUR |
| 31 Day Notice | 3.75% | Best short-notice halal rate in Britain at our crawl date |
| 93 Day Notice | 3.75% | Same rate as 31-day; no reason to choose it |
| 120 Day Notice | 3.10% | Pays less than 31-day; avoid |
| Wakala Fixed Terms | 3.50% (3m), 3.65% (6m), 3.65% (9m), 3.60% (12m), 3.10% (18m) | GBP figures; USD/EUR available; to 3 years by arrangement |
The inverted rate card, and what to do about it
Study that table for a moment, because it teaches a general lesson. At QIB, longer commitment frequently pays less: the 120-day notice pays 3.10% against 3.75% at 31 days, and the 18-month fix pays 3.10% against 3.65% at six months. A saver who assumed the usual upward curve and locked long would have paid for the assumption. The actionable rule at this bank is simple: take the 31-day notice account, which was the best short-notice halal rate in Britain at our crawl date, consider the 6 or 9 month Wakala terms, and ignore the longer variants entirely unless the card changes. It is also fair to say the whole curve trails the retail specialists: Al Rayan paid 4.73% at one year and HBZ Sirat's eDeposit 4.81% against QIB's 3.60%. Nobody joins QIB for yield, and the bank does not pretend otherwise.
What you are actually buying: the relationship
QIB (UK)'s real product is a wholly Islamic private banking relationship with Qatari institutional weight behind it. The current account is the gateway: open it through the Mayfair team, receive a relationship manager, then allocate across instant access, notice and Wakala terms in GBP, USD and EUR under one roof, with profit paid monthly, quarterly or annually to suit income needs. For families with Gulf business interests, Qatari connections, or multi-currency liquidity that wants Shariah certainty and a human who answers, that is a genuine proposition the retail banks do not offer. The Shariah governance is heavyweight: a Supervisory Board of Sheikh Walid Ben Hadi (Chairman), Sheikh Nizam Mohammed Yaquby and Sheikh Mohamed Ahmaine, reporting annually within the published accounts, on a balance sheet that has been wholly Shariah compliant since 2008. Fixed terms are explicitly named as Wakala contracts; property finance is named as Murabaha.
The transparency gaps, listed plainly
- Private banking onboarding criteria and account tariffs: not published.
- Property finance: London residential Murabaha and a UK-wide Structured Real Estate desk exist, but no rates, FTV limits or fees are published at all.
- Minimum balances on deposit products: not published.
- Product-level fatwa downloads: none on the website; the SSB reports annually within the accounts instead.
Our editorial stance on unpublished pricing is consistent across every guide we write: negotiate with published competitors on the table. A QIB property finance quote should be tendered against Gatehouse's published Home Purchase Plan rates and Nomo's published factsheets, and the home financing hub gives you the ammunition. The same logic runs the other way: if QIB wants your deposit relationship, ask the relationship manager why the notice rate you are quoted should not at least match what BLME publishes to strangers. Private banking pricing rewards clients who arrive with the public market memorised, and every number you need is on our bank accounts hub.
Context: why a Qatari private bank sits in Mayfair
QIB (UK) has run a wholly Shariah compliant balance sheet in London since 2008, making it one of the longest-standing Islamic institutions in Britain after Al Rayan's 2004 founding. Its parent, Qatar Islamic Bank, is Qatar's largest Islamic bank, and the London operation exists where its clients' lives intersect Britain: education, property, business interests and multi-currency wealth flowing between the Gulf and the UK. That heritage explains the product design. The deposit shelf spans GBP, USD and EUR because the clientele genuinely holds all three; profit payment can be monthly, quarterly or annual because some clients live on it; and the property finance desk works London residential purchases, owner-occupied and buy-to-let, plus UK-wide structured real estate, priced per client rather than per rate card. Within its own private banking category, the closest UK Islamic comparators are Nomo for digital-first Gulf customers and HBZ Sirat for branch-served non-residents; a GCC family with UK interests might rationally hold all three for different jobs.
The Raisin back door
Ordinary savers can hold QIB (UK) fixed terms through the Raisin UK savings platform without private banking onboarding, keeping FSCS protection on eligible deposits. Why bother, given the rates trail the specialists? One honest reason: licence diversification. A saver already at the FSCS limit with Al Rayan, Gatehouse and BLME can add a fourth protected 120,000 GBP tranche at a wholly Islamic, PRA-authorised bank (FRN 466577) through a platform account, per the strategy in our FSCS guide. For that specific saver, QIB via Raisin is genuinely useful; for a first or second savings account, it is not the answer.
Who QIB (UK) is for
Private clients with Gulf connections wanting relationship banking on a wholly Islamic balance sheet; short-notice savers inside the relationship, for whom 3.75% at 31 days was the best in Britain; multi-currency families wanting GBP, USD and EUR Islamic deposits under one manager; and FSCS-limit planners via Raisin. Everyone else, from rate-chasers to first-time savers to home finance shoppers, is better served by the retail specialists on our bank accounts hub, or by getting matched to the right provider for the job.
Frequently asked questions
Can I just open a QIB (UK) savings account online?
Not in the retail sense: the current account, opened through the Mayfair private banking team, is the gateway to the deposit shelf. The exception is fixed terms via Raisin UK, which need no private banking relationship.
Is QIB (UK) FSCS protected?
Yes, on eligible deposits, as a PRA-authorised UK bank (FRN 466577). The 120,000 GBP per-licence rules apply as everywhere; QIB is its own licence, separate from Qatar Islamic Bank's home operations and from every other UK Islamic bank.
Compare providers in your state
See side-by-side comparisons of Shariah-compliant products, or let our matcher recommend the best options for your situation.
Why do the notice accounts pay more than the fixed terms?
We can verify the fact but not the reason: at the 26 March 2026 rate sheet, 31-day notice money out-paid every published fixed term. Banks price deposits to their funding needs, and QIB's needs evidently favour notice money. The practical response is to take the anomaly while it lasts and re-check the card before renewing anything.