In most circumstances, the comparison between the price of an Islamic financial product and a conventional (that is, non-Islamic) product is known as "benchmarking". It is important to understand that the process of benchmarking, involves referring to a product that might use an interest rate (such as LIBOR plus a further profit margin) when determining the level of Rent charged, is not the same as charging interest under a loan. Shariah Scholars have permitted Islamic finance providers to refer to an interest rate benchmark for determining Rent provided that the benchmark is well known to everyone so that no dispute over the amount of Rent can arise in the future. If the characteristics of Ijara are present (e.g. the Bank owns the property and leases it to the customer) it does not matter that the Rent is calculated in this way.
