A current account is where money waits, and Islamic law has a specific view about waiting money: if you lend it to the bank under Qard, the bank owes you exactly what you deposited, and anything extra is a discretionary gift. That is why most Malaysian current account-i products pay nothing and promise nothing. But a handful run on Tawarruq instead, and a couple of those print real profit tiers on chequing balances. If you or your business carries meaningful float, the difference is worth actual money.
Everything below comes from our crawl of Malaysian Islamic bank websites on August 6, 2026.
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The two contracts behind your chequing account
Qard accounts are loans from you to the bank. Maybank Islamic's Current Account-i and Bank Islam's Qard Current Account-i both print the mechanics on the page: ownership of the money transfers to the bank, the bank must repay in full on demand, and any hibah is at the bank's absolute discretion. This is the classical safekeeping treatment for transactional money, and its honesty is its feature.
Tawarruq accounts run your balance through a commodity trade, which lets the bank pay a contractual return where it chooses to. CIMB Islamic's Current Account-i names Tawarruq on the page. RHB Islamic and Public Islamic Bank go further and print tier tables.
The accounts that pay on float
RHB Islamic's Current Account-i Option 2 pays 0.55% p.a. on balances up to RM500,000, 0.70% to RM1,000,000 and 1.00% above that, under a split-tier method where each band earns its own rate, effective 28 August 2025. The Premier Current Account-i reaches 1.70% p.a. above RM1,000,000. Note that balances below RM100,000 earn nothing on either option, so small operators should treat RHB's account as purely transactional.
Public Islamic's CM Plus Current Account-i prints tiers of 0.10% to 0.80% p.a., with the 0.80% applying above roughly RM3.5 million, effective 16 January 2025. The base CM Current Account-i is labelled non-profit bearing, an honest flag that yield-seekers need the Plus variant. Public Islamic also attaches an optional Cash Line Facility-i, an Islamic revolving credit line, which is documented on the product page.
For working balances above half a million ringgit, RHB's printed tiers are the strongest current account economics in the market. Below RM100,000, nobody pays you meaningfully, and the decision should turn on fees, network and entry requirements instead.
Entry requirements compared
| Account | Opening deposit | Introducer needed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank Islam Qard Current Account-i | RM500 individual / RM1,000 non-individual | Not stated | No ongoing minimum balance |
| Hong Leong Islamic Current Account-i | RM500 | Not stated | Tawarruq explained on page |
| Maybank Islamic Current Account-i | RM1,000 individual / RM2,000 others | Yes | Malaysia's largest branch network |
| Public Islamic CM Current Account-i | RM3,000 individual / RM5,000 non-individual | Yes | No minimum balance; Cash Line Facility-i optional |
| RHB Current Account-i | Per product terms | Per product terms | Profit tiers from RM100,000 (Option 2) |
| CIMB Current Account-i | Per product terms | Per product terms | Tawarruq named; OCTO app |
The introducer requirement at Maybank Islamic and Public Islamic is a genuine friction: you need an existing customer to vouch for you at opening. Bank Islam and Hong Leong Islamic have the lowest entry bars, at RM500 with no minimum balance requirement at Bank Islam. Eligibility breadth differs too: Hong Leong Islamic's page opens the account to sole proprietors, partnerships, schools, clubs and societies, and screens organisational customers for Shariah-compliant activities, while Bank Islam's account types span individuals, joint holders, partnerships, government bodies and associations. If you run a surau committee or a small association, both banks have thought about you.
Which account for which user
- Sole trader or small business with modest float: Hong Leong Islamic or Bank Islam. Low entry, clean contracts, no introducer friction reported on-page.
- Business holding RM500,000+ in operating cash: RHB Islamic's Option 2 or Premier tiers. Printed yield on chequing is rare; take it.
- Public Bank group loyalists and SMEs wanting an Islamic credit line: Public Islamic's CM Current Account-i with the Cash Line Facility-i attached.
- Maximum branch and ATM coverage: Maybank Islamic, accepting the introducer requirement and RM1,000 floor.
- Multi-currency needs: HSBC Amanah's Everyday Global Account-i holds up to 11 currencies with zero account fees, the only Islamic multi-currency everyday account we found in Malaysia.
One account deserves a special mention for travellers rather than businesses. Standard Chartered Saadiq's JumpStart Savings Account-i functions like a spending account: 0.05% p.a. profit, but 5% cashback up to RM250 per month on e-wallet top-ups, travel and overseas debit spend, with zero currency-conversion fees. Paired with a proper savings account elsewhere, it covers the transactional side of life better than most chequing products.
What to check before you open
Current account fee schedules mostly live in separate fees-and-charges documents rather than on the product pages, and that is where the real costs hide. Before opening, pull the fee list and check four line items: the half-yearly service charge and whether a minimum balance waives it, cheque book and per-cheque charges, interbank transfer fees above the free DuitNow tiers, and dormancy fees if the account might sit idle. Two accounts with identical opening deposits can differ by RM100 or more a year in running costs.
Also confirm what the account does digitally. CIMB's Current Account-i runs through the OCTO app, Hong Leong's through Hong Leong Connect, Bank Islam's through its BIMB web and mobile channels with e-Debit and MEPS Cash support. For a business, the question is more specific: does the bank's business banking platform support the payment volumes, payroll files and user permissions you need? Public Islamic routes business users to PB Enterprise, and Maybank's reach extends through Maybank2u's business tiers.
Finally, note that a Qard current account can still receive hibah. Bank Islam's page states hibah may be given monthly at the bank's discretion even on its Current Account-i. Nobody should choose an account expecting discretionary gifts, but it is a small structural kindness the conventional world has no equivalent for.
The PIDM position
Every account named above is at a PIDM member bank, so eligible deposits are protected up to RM250,000 per depositor per bank, with Islamic deposits protected separately from conventional deposits at the same banking group. For businesses, that per-bank structure is an argument for not concentrating all operating cash in one institution. Details in our PIDM guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can an Islamic current account have an overdraft?
Not an interest-charging overdraft, but equivalents exist. Public Islamic's Cash Line Facility-i is a Shariah-compliant revolving credit line that attaches to its current account. The pricing runs through Islamic contracts rather than debit interest. Ask for the PDS before relying on it.
Why does my current account pay zero when savings accounts pay 2% or more?
Mostly contract choice and bank economics. Qard-based accounts cannot promise a return by design. Where banks want to compete for your float, they use Tawarruq and print tiers, as RHB and Public Islamic do. If your balance routinely exceeds RM100,000, move to an account that pays, or sweep the excess to a savings account with a real rate.
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.
Do cheques still matter in 2026?
Less every year, with DuitNow and JomPAY handling most payment flows. But some landlords, suppliers and government processes still want cheques, and a current account-i remains the only Islamic account class that issues them. Weigh whether you need the cheque book before paying a higher opening deposit for one. For the full account universe, see our bank accounts hub.