Development of interest and interest-free finance concepts in the historical process and application of interest-free finance system

Interest has been on the agenda since the early ages when humanity started to make money and it has been discussed a lot. It has been the subject of different practices in almost every period of history with its religious, social, economic and legal dimensions. For the first time in legal terms, it was subject to limitations with the Code of Hammurabi and became an interest-free economic instrument. This thesis has been written in order to reveal the widespread effect and necessity of interest and the interest-free financial system in societies. The question is whether an interest-free global economy is possible. Accordingly, the scope of the study is based on two main research topics. While the first was the development of capitalism and interest as money gain in the historical process, the second main part was interest-free finance applications. In this context, the development of interest and capitalism, practices in the Ottoman Empire and Turkey, the features of Islamic banking that differ from traditional banking, the expected benefits from Islamic finance methods, the history of Islamic Banking, how it started from a modest scale and how it became viable and efficient institutions are explained. The sector shares and developments of the countries using interest-free instruments in this field are supported by qualitative research using comparison and descriptive methods. Qualitative research methods were used as the thesis research method. Before starting the literature review, it can be thought that the spread of the interest-free finance sector under the Islamic economy will have no chance against the power of capitalism and the prevalence of interest. However, when the study is concluded, it is seen that interest-free systems have taken place in the economies with many interest and interest-free formations and opened a growing area for itself globally. Interest has also become a dispensable/alternative tool against alternatives. This thesis is a study that concluded that Islamic Banking is now well established at the international level, the theoretical and practical data of the countries, and the increase in market shares. The field of Islamic economics, which progresses in the theoretical framework, is removed from the shortage of empirical (experimental) literature with the studies carried out and the simulation studies and market application results that will be increased in the following periods. At the stage reached in the literature review, it is seen that Islamic finance is now handled with studies that blend theory and modern experimentation. Islamic economics and finance has begun to be accepted as a fundamental discipline by academic circles. While there are many academic studies, the number of which has increased in the field of interest-free banking and Islamic economics in Europe, it has been observed that the number of academic studies is still insufficient, although Turkey's need for specialized personnel in the field and especially in the last two decades has begun to contribute to the literature. Keywords: Interest, qualitative method, interest-free finance.