Following some unsuccessful attempts to establish Islamic banks in Nasser's Egypt during the 1960s, The Islamic Bank of Dubai (established 1975) was the first successful Islamic bank in the world. It was the first bank to implement the economic principles of the Shari'a, by abstaining from charging interest and by avoiding all business considered as immoral in Islam, like gambling, pornography, alcohol and pork-meat. Since then, and especially during this passing decade, Islamic banking and Shari'a Finance expanded rapidly. Many Islamic banks and other Islamic financial institutions were established all over the world and currently there are approximately 400 Islamic financial institutions with a total volume of business nearing 1 trillion dollars. Based on a variety of sources, including professional literature, newspapers, websites and internet forums, my presentation will focus on the special mechanisms used by Islamic banks, like mark-up trade financing ("Murabaha"), joint ventures based on the principle of "Profit and Loss Sharing" ("Musharaka"), venture capital funding ("Mudharaba") and leasing deals ("Ijarah"). I will also refer to other mechanisms, about which Islamic scholars are disputed, like the Islamic securities ("Sukuk") and the multi-stage deals ("Tawaruq"). The presentation will argue that Islamic banking became a global phenomenon and an important economic factor, with an expanding presence not only in the Middle East and in countries like Pakistan and Malaysia, but also in countries and regions in which the Muslim population is a minority, sometimes quite small, like Japan, Singapore, Western Europe and North America. I will argue that the advantages of Islamic banking, and especially its capability to enhance liquidity and to simplify bureaucratic procedures, convinced Western governments to encourage Islamic Banking and even to initiate legislation in its favor. My presentation will show that Islamic Banking, not only became a global phenomenon, but also raised disputes and controversies. In the Middle East we witness a fierce struggle between Islamic and conventional banking systems and in other parts of the world, like in Europe and in North America there is a growing debate about this financial system. While its opponents claim that it might strengthen radical Islam and foster financial delinquency its supporters say that Islamic Banking is not only a great and promising economic method, which is more immune to global economic disasters, but that it also serves as a genuine bridge between cultures and civilizations.