Wahed (company) explained

Wahed Inc.
Key People:Mohsin Siddiqui (CEO)
Founded:2017
Hq Location:New York[1]
Products:Asset management
Mobile app
Website
Num Employees:100+
Website:https://wahed.com/
Industry:Finance
Areas Served:Worldwide[2] [3]

Wahed is an American financial technology and services company based in New York City, New York.[4] [5] In July 2019, the company launched the first exchange-traded fund in the United States that was compliant with Sharia law.[6] [7] [8] Wahed operates in 130 countries and has offices in Washington D.C, New York, London and Dubai. According to Bloomberg, it has a valuation of $300 million.[9]

History

In 2017, Wahed Invest launched the world's first automated Islamic investment platform.[10]

In November 2017, Wahed raised seed capital from investors including former JPMorgan Chase managing director John Elkhair and director of McKinsey & Company, Laurent Nordin.[11] [12]

In August 2018, Wahed made its first international expansion by launching its operations in the UK.[13] In October 2018, Wahed raised a $7 million round with Cue Ball Capital and BECO Capital.[14] [15] In November 2018, the company launched a Halal Stock Screener mobile app to compare 50,000 Sharia-compliant stocks.[16]

In July 2019, the company launched the Wahed FTSE USA Shariah ETF (HLAL), which tracks a benchmark derived from the broad FTSE USA Index.[17]

In July 2020, Wahed raised $25 million in a Series A funding round led by Saudi Aramco Entrepreneurship Ventures with participation from existing investors BECO and Cue Ball Capital, as well as Dubai Cultiv8 and Rasameel.[18] [19] In December 2020 Wahed acquired Niyah Ltd, a British company that runs a digital banking app designed for the Muslim community for an undisclosed amount. [20]

In 2021, Khabib Nurmagomedov joined as an investor and brand ambassador, and in 2022, Paul Pogba also joined these roles.[21] On 10 February 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged Wahed Invest, LLC with making misleading statements and for compliance failures related to its Shari’ah advisory business.[22] In June 2022, Wahed completed a $50 million Series B funding round, putting the company's valuation at $300 million.[9]

In March 2024, Wahed's founder Junaid Wahedna stepped down as CEO and was succeeded by ComplyAdvantage's former Chief Revenue Officer Mohsin Siddiqui.[23] [24]

Company

Wahed is aimed at investors looking for ethical investments aligned with Islamic principles.[25] Wahed is regulated in the following jurisdictions: SEC (USA), FCA (UK), SEBI (India), OJK (Indonesia), AFSA (Kazakhstan), SC (Malaysia), FSC (Mauritius) and FSCA (South Africa).[26] An ethical review board monitors the company's investments to make sure they agree with Islamic values. The investment company cannot involve liquor, firearms, gambling or tobacco industries, nor can they generate excess profit from charging interest.[27] The robo-advisor invests in Sukuks (Islamic bonds), U.S. stocks, emerging stock markets, real estate and gold.[28]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: When investing meets technology. Khairani Afifi Noordin. Maxine Yong. 26 December 2016. The Edge Malaysia.
  2. Web site: Halal robo-advisor Wahed debuts in Malaysia. The Malaysian Reserve. 30 October 2019.
  3. Web site: Sharia investment start-up aims for Malaysia, India expansion. Gulf News. 23 February 2019.
  4. Web site: Wahed raises $7 million for Halal-based investment platform. Dean Takahashi. 1 November 2017. Venture Beat.
  5. Web site: French. Fintech: un entrepreneur musulman cree un algorithme pour trouver des investissements halal. Corentin Durand. 7 June 2017. Numerama.
  6. Web site: Religion Meets Profit Generation in a Slew of New Faith-Based ETFs. Bloomberg Businessweek. 23 June 2020.
  7. Web site: Wahed Invest launches Shariah-compliant US equity ETF. ETF Strategy. 16 July 2020.
  8. Web site: Shariah-Based ETF Arrives In U.S.. Financial Advisor. 17 July 2020.
  9. Web site: Gani . Aisha . 15 June 2022 . Startup Wahed Backed by Aramco and Paul Pogba Now Valued at $300 Million . Bloomberg .
  10. Web site: Wahed Invest Launches in Malaysia. Business Insider. 30 October 2019.
  11. Web site: Robo-adviser Wahed targets Muslim investors in U.S. and beyond. Bernardo Vizcaino. 6 June 2017. Reuters.
  12. Web site: New Robo-Advisor Provides Access to Shariah Compliant Investments. 6 June 2017. JD Alois. Crowdfund Insider.
  13. News: Wahed Invest launches automated Islamic advisory service in Britain. 2018-08-21. Reuters. 2019-05-18. en.
  14. Web site: Halal online investment platform Wahed raises £6 million. 2018-10-24. Finextra Research. en. 2019-05-18.
  15. Web site: Exclusive: First Islamic robo-adviser to launch in Mena. Sarah Townsend. 1 November 2017. The National.
  16. Web site: Wahed Invest launches first Halal Stock Screener app. 2018-11-13. Institutional Asset Manager. en. 2019-05-18.
  17. Web site: New ETF Targets Shariah Law. ETF. 16 July 2019.
  18. Web site: Halal fintech startup Wahed closes $25M led by Saudi Aramco's investment arm. TechCrunch. 8 June 2020.
  19. Web site: Dubai Cultiv8 invests in New York Shariah-compliant advisor. Arabian Business. 2 October 2019.
  20. News: Irrera. Anna. 2020-12-17. Islamic fintech Wahed Invest to buy UK digital banking app Niyah. en. Reuters. 2021-09-20.
  21. Web site: International football icon Paul Pogba becomes Brand Ambassador for Islamic fintech company. British Muslim Magazine. June 2022.
  22. Web site: SEC.gov SEC Charges Robo-Adviser with Misleading Clients . 2022-11-06 . www.sec.gov.
  23. Web site: The Appointment of Wahed’s New CEO . 2024-07-22 . www.wahed.com . en.
  24. Web site: Fintech . I. F. N. . 2024-03-31 . Junaid Wahedna makes way for new CEO as he takes on chairmanship of Wahed . 2024-07-22 . IFN Fintech . en-US.
  25. Web site: Wahed Invest: A Sharia'h Compliant Robo-advisory. Carla Sertin. Kartik Gandhi. 15 August 2017. Forbes.
  26. Web site: First robo adviser enters the Islamic finance stage. 25 October 2016. Gulf Times.
  27. Web site: Wahed Invest: A Look at the New Islamic Robo-Advisor. Barbara A. Friedberg. 25 November 2016. Investopedia.
  28. Web site: Wahed Invest promises to be the first Sharia-friendly roboadvisor for Muslim millennials. Emma Hinchliffe. 14 June 2017. Mashable.

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