Islamic banking in Oman is expected to grow at double-digit rates as sharia-compliant banking products increasingly gain acceptance and the government's plans to ease restrictions come to fruition. Launched in 2012, Oman's nascent Islamic banking segment saw assets surge more than fivefold to OR1.1bn ($2.86bn) at the end of the second quarter of 2014, according to a study by Thomson Reuters. Within Islamic finance, lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is identified as a key sector for growth. According to some estimates, more than 90% of all registered firms in the sultanate fall into the SME category, although their combined contribution to the economy is only 15%.