The poor growth of musharakah-based finance in the context of Pakistani Islamic
banking is the main motivation behind this study. The literature identifies several
factors for this poor growth. Among these, the direct influence of internal and
external factors on the application of musharakah has gained crucial theoretical and
empirical support. This study aims to identify the influence of internal control
systems (internal factor) via the moderating role of government policies (external
factor) on the growth of musharakah-based finance in Pakistani Islamic banking. To
begin with, this study uses exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to identify the
underlying structure of items, and PLS-SEM to identify possible effects on data
collected from 92 respondents. Results indicate the existence of partial moderation
at a 10% level of significance (t-value=1.876, p-value=0.061). Since this paper tests
the moderating variable, develops a theoretical framework, and uses Smart PLS 3 as
methodological contributions improving upon existing literature. The study
concludes by identifying future research opportunities and considering other
variables with mediating effects