[Extract from Preface of Islam and Business Ethics by Dr S M Hassanuzaman,
Published by the Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance, London, UK 2003]

Emphasises that love for wealth is a natural instinct and should not be suppressed.
Emphasises that this wealth should not be made the object of worship and that self-interest should give way to the duty of social welfare.

Ethical values laid down by the Qur'an and the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)
The emphasis that inheres in this value system is aimed at training the inner self of man, so as to motivate him to abandon selfishness in favour of social interests. Among these values, justice and benevolence (ihsan) are the most important. This emphasises that absolute justice is a purely legal concept, but benevolence is supererogatory and transcends justice. Observance of benevolence would automatically protect the precincts of justice.

Market mechanism which Islam visualises
It allows the free operation of market forces only for as long as one benefits without damaging others' interests.
The edifice of the whole of life in Islam rests on absolute ethical values. These values are laid down and emphasised in the Qur'an and reinforced in the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. Many of the ethical values laid down in Islam are not unique to Islamic society. They have been universally observed, but constrained by temporal and spatial limitations in order to achieve the interest of some particular person, society, class or territory. Islamic ethical values represent universal ethical values. These values, whether in the Qur'an or in the earlier Scriptures, are not amenable to restriction to a particular society or region; they are of universal import. God has ordained that these values should be observed by the entire human race for all time, with the object of seeking God's pleasure and to earn a reward in the next world.


Source : islamic-banikng.com