Aladin — Modernizing Sharia Banking

01Impact first

Aladin Syariah launched in 2021 as a 100% digital Sharia bank. The design reduced onboarding drop-off by 45%, drove +70% in-app feature usage, and earned a 4.8★ Play Store rating during pilot. By December 2022 the bank had 225,000+ verified users — with an onboarding flow regarded as the smoothest in the market (in-app liveness, no video calls).

02The problem

Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population, yet Sharia banking held only 5.8% of banking assets (OJK, 2020). Our survey of 157 Muslim users showed why: 60% didn't own a Sharia account, 52% didn't understand the benefits, and young users saw Sharia banking as outdated and hard to use. Convenience came first; values were a bonus — no product served both.

03What I led

• Research: stakeholder interviews, market benchmarking, and survey analysis across 157 users; persona work using the four Muslim mindsets framework (Rationalist, Universalist, Conformist, Apathist) — we targeted Universalists and Rationalists
• End-to-end flows: onboarding, transfers, QRIS payments, savings, and Zakat
• A scalable design system adopted by both product and marketing teams
• Deep collaboration with Sharia advisors, Legal, and Compliance so every journey aligned with Islamic finance principles without sacrificing usability

04Key design decisions

• Onboarding with no video call: in-app liveness verification made account opening fast and private — our sharpest competitive edge
• Sharia explained simply: light, contextual education instead of dense religious text. Inclusive, not exclusive
• Deliberately step-by-step transfers in year one to build confidence for first-time digital banking users — then shortened in year two as familiarity grew
• Zakat, Infaq, and Sadaqah designed into the core experience with impact feedback ("your Zakat helped 3 families this month")

05Reflection

Ethical principles and product convenience aren't mutually exclusive. Culturally-sensitive design is a business advantage — but only if you treat compliance stakeholders as design partners, not gatekeepers.