The attitudes of Turkish and Syrian customers of Islamic banking in Turkey; their threats and opportunities

Since the competition in the banking sector is increasing; the customer perspective became an important element in the banking industry. This makes it necessary to determine the perspectives and behaviors of the banks' customers. In this study, Turkish and Syrian customers' perspective of Islamic Banks in Turkey have been examined according to their demographic characteristics. The customers' perception of Islamic banking activities has determined through a survey method not only for current customers but also for potential customers of Islamic banks. According to the survey results and based on the participants' answers, the differences between their answers have statistically determined, and significant tests have been performed. Descriptive analysis, Likert Scale, Chi-Square Test and T-test were used to measure whether the participants agree with statements related to the Islamic banking issue by using the SPSS program. According to the findings; age, profession, and monthly income influence both Turkish and Syrian customers in Islamic banking selection. Education was found as non-influencer factor for Turkish customers, but it was found to be for Syrians. However, after comparing the results of Turks and Syrians, there was found a difference in Islamic banking selection between Turks and Syrians according to gender, education level, occupation, and monthly income. On the other hand, there is no difference between them in Islamic banking selection according to their ages. As for the motivation factors, there is an effect of religion, bank reputation, customer awareness, service quality, and customer behavior on the customers' preferences toward Islamic banking. While the mass media factor affects the Turks; but does not affect Syrians.