The halal investing space is getting busier

Something has shifted in the halal investing space over the last 12 months, and you can feel it just by looking at who's entering the market.

In just the fund space, we've seen the likes of Baillie Gifford, Invesco, HSBC, and Franklin Templeton launch a new sharia-compliant fund or are in the process of launching one.

Businesses love to grow into new areas, especially ones that are experiencing growth. Sharia-compliant investing is fertile ground that people are capitalising on. One may question their motives: "Hey, you're just in this to get Muslims' money!" But alas, what is business but a profit generation machine? If the opportunity is there, can you blame the business for going after it? I don't think so.

It would of course be lovely if someone came into this industry with a "Muslim-first" mindset instead of a profit-first one. Maybe Wahed does that? Not sure. But it's a bit like taking an akhirah-focused mindset over a dunya one. It's easier said than done. I'm sure you can think of a few examples where you may have prioritised dunya over akhirah.

Now the problem is: if one were to be truly akhirah-focused here, they may not be involved in the industry at all! But maybe if we overcome that hurdle, the extra burden of not being commercial-first may end up being higher fees or fewer options. It's almost like a triangle of integrity, cost, and choice. As you push towards two of the three, you lose the other.

The vote on what comes out on top may well be in our hands as Muslims. If we prioritise choice and cost above all else, we may lose players in the market that focus on Islam and integrity. Or maybe the market will simply segment depending on what's more important to you as an investor. It does make you think though: maybe there's more to consider than just the fees on a fund or its performance when I pick it.

Contents

• Nisba updates
• Halal fund performance
• New savings account
• Fear and greed index
• Platform updates
• Islamic reflection
• Events
• Educational focus, three articles on pensions and investing hype
• Final reflection

Nisba updates

It's been a busy stretch for the team, here's a quick look at what we've been up to.

1. We were invited to the exclusive launch of Baillie Gifford's new Islamic equity fund, alongside journalists and other key players in the finance space. Safe to say we enjoyed the breakfast

2. We sat down with a $500 million Muslim fund manager. Keep an eye out for the YouTube coming soon

3. The Halal Screener has now launched a Dividend Pie

4. Prosper's CEO had us on his podcast

5. British Muslim Magazine featured us in their latest issue

6. Muslim Tech Fest brought our booth to life and it was great meeting so many of you. Long day though, see how we felt by the end of it in the photo below

7. Nearly 200 of you joined our latest webinar on building Trading 212 pies. Seems like one we may need to do again

8. Our group chat is making a return to WhatsApp, this time UK only and a bit more controlled, so we don't hit the limit and everyone inside is either benefiting from it or adding benefit to others.

Halal fund performance (1 month)

• Stocks had a strong month across the board, with emerging markets leading the way and developed markets in the US, Europe, Japan and global trackers all following close behind. Meanwhile crypto and precious metals had a rough run, with Bitcoin taking the heaviest hit and platinum, silver and gold all sliding too.

• Global equities are often described as returning 7 to 12% a year on average. This month, some funds delivered that in a single month. A good reminder that investments like these can go up a lot, but they can also come down just as quickly.

Islamic Savings Accounts

Exciting news this week, we've seen a new style of account hit the market, possibly for the first time. There is now an easy access cash ISA available.

Above image represents the amount of £10,000 saved for the course of 12 months.

Before getting too excited and jumping straight in, just make sure you can answer the following:

1. You're clear on how ISA allowances are shared across different ISAs.

2. Using this part of your ISA allowance actually fits into your plan.

3. You know your salary bracket and know whether you’ve used your personal savings allowance.

4. You know how this type of profit is taxed.

Sorry to be boring with the educational reminders, we feel an obligation to educate at any chance we get.

Fear and Greed Index

The Fear and Greed Index is currently sitting at 37, firmly in Fear territory. A week ago it was at 31, and a month ago it was at 61, in Greed. So sentiment has clearly shifted. Not to say it can't swing straight back again.

For those new to it, the index is a useful gauge of how the market is feeling. Extreme Fear often means investors are panicking and prices may be lower than they should be, while Extreme Greed can signal the opposite, that things may be overheated. It's not a tool to time the market, but it's a helpful reminder to check whether your decisions are being driven by logic or emotion.

Platform updates

Not a huge amount to report this week.

Hargreaves Lansdown have listed the new actively managed Islamic equity fund from Baillie Gifford. It's been running behind closed doors for around 3 years, so there's a real track record to look at rather than a brand new launch with no history.

Bayuti have rolled out a couple of new features:

• Direct debits are now live

• Dividends can be automatically reinvested into the Wakala or Amanah

Islamic reflection

I've been thinking recently about how often we measure our weeks by what we got done, rather than how we got it done.

It's easy to finish a busy day feeling accomplished, ticking off tasks, replying to messages, hitting targets, and forget to ask whether any of it was done with the right intention. The Prophet ﷺ said that actions are judged by intentions, and that every person will have only what they intended. It's a short hadith but it carries a lot of weight when you actually sit with it.

Two people can do the exact same thing, and yet one walks away with reward and the other walks away with nothing. The action looks identical from the outside, but Allah sees what's underneath.

A quiet reminder for myself this week, to slow down a little before each task and check who I'm really doing it for.

Events

We are have our Intro to Halal Investing - the perfect starting place for beginners. Sunday 28th June.

Save your spot 

Educational focus

Article 1: Are you a NERD? (and why that's not great)

A new piece of research by The People's Pension has revealed something worrying about how young adults feel about their financial future, and it's not the kind of nerd anyone wants to be.

The survey found that around one in eight young adults (12%) believe engaging with their pension is pointless. The researchers even coined a term for this group, the Never Ever Retiring Demographic, or NERDs. Not because they're clever, and not because they're organised, but because they've mentally checked out of retirement planning altogether.

For many Muslims in the UK, this feeling is understandable. Pensions can seem distant, complicated, and to be honest, not always aligned with our values. When you're unsure whether your workplace pension is halal, it's easy to disengage.

But the research also found that nearly a quarter of young adults (23%) don't know how much they're contributing, and one in five (20%) don't know what their employer contributes either. That's a lot of uncertainty for something that will one day be your main source of income.

So if you don't want to be a NERD, here's where to start:

1. Check your current pension balance.

2. Find out how much you're contributing each month.

3. Find out how much your employer is contributing.

4. Check whether your pension is invested in a halal fund.

5. If it isn't, explore your halal pension options.

Article 2: A wishlist idea, early access to the State Pension?

The second pensions story this fortnight is less of a policy and more of a thought starter, but it's sparked some debate. The Social Market Foundation (SMF) has proposed allowing younger adults to access a portion of their State Pension early, potentially to help with housing or financial pressures.

Their research found that over half of young adults (52%) would support early access, and nearly two thirds (64%) said it would help them feel more financially secure. Whether this ever becomes reality is another question entirely, but it does highlight something important. Younger generations feel squeezed, and they're looking for flexibility.

For Muslim readers, this raises deeper questions about financial responsibility, long term planning, and whether early access would genuinely help, or simply shift the problem into the future. Still, it's a conversation worth having, especially as the cost of living crisis continues to shape how young Muslims think about saving and retirement

Article 3 Reflection: The SpaceX IPO hype, a lesson in not following the crowd

Now that the SpaceX IPO has already happened, it's worth reflecting on the hype that surrounded it. Social media was full of "I'm buying on day one" energy, and many people treated it like a once in a lifetime opportunity. But as Muslims, we're taught to avoid speculation, to think long term, and to make decisions based on knowledge, not excitement.

The SpaceX IPO is a perfect example of why hype can be dangerous. Before the listing, there were no public financials, no Shariah screening, and no clarity on whether the business structure would even meet halal criteria. Yet people were ready to jump in purely because it was trending.

Now that the dust has settled, the lesson is simple. Hype is not a halal investment strategy. Whether it's SpaceX, AI companies, or the next big tech unicorn, the same principles apply:

1. Understand the business.

2. Check the financials.

3. Confirm Shariah compliance.

4. Avoid emotional decision making.

If you want to explore this further, it's worth reading up active investing vs passive and is stock picking even worth it in the long run

Final reflection

What to do with that money? Oh boy, do we hear that a lot at Nisba. There's a lot to think about: how do I make it work? Is it risky? Do I even need to do anything? Analysis paralysis is the name of the game, and it's why so many people just do nothing.

People ask us what we're building at Nisba and where we hope to go. The answer to that question has changed many times since we started a couple of years ago. For the first time in those two years, we now have a service to offer beyond education, through our relationship with Ansari Financial Planning. Offering financial advice is great for those with complex situations or for those (and we've seen many) who aren't interested in learning or just want their hand held along the journey.

Financial advice is something many people shy away from. They're scared of the fees, or they believe they can do it themselves. Both are true - there are fees involved with financial advice, and there are parts of financial planning you can tackle alone if you're inclined. But for those with analysis paralysis, those short on time, or just those who need an expert guiding them along the way, we believe it's a valuable service.

And the future of Nisba? Well, education is one thing, advice is another. But what about the product? Something real that people could invest into - something that doesn't exist already, or something we can do better. That's something we think about a lot. It seems distant and expensive for now, but it's always on our mind and something we inch towards slowly but surely.

If you are interested in education, our nisba academy starts in 2 weeks. If you need any more info we have opened some slots so you can ask your questions to the team.

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