Sharia-compliant ethical investing platform Wahed Invest has raised $8m in funding, valuing the company at $100m.
The New York-headquartered robo-advisor will use this batch of funding to speed up the development of a global savings and investing solution. The company is also looking to expand its services globally, following its success in the US and UK, with a particular focus on the GCC and ASEAN markets.
Contributions to the round came from Boston-based Ball Capital, and Middle Eastern venture firm BECO Capital. With this new batch of equity, the company has raised a total of $15m since 2015.
New York-based Wahed is a Halal-focused investment platform to ensure the users capital is used to invest in companies which comply with Islamic principles. The platform is a robo-advisor supported automated investment platform.
There is a minimum investment size of £100 to ensure investing is available to everyone to build portfolios of ethically responsible stocks, Sukuk (Islamic bonds) and gold. Users are allocated an optimal portfolio, based on their risk tolerance and ideal investment strategy.
BECO Capital managing partner Amir Farha said, “Junaid and his team at Wahed have continued to execute and build the global coverage of their offering in an extraordinary manner, giving access to a significant market that needs this service.
“The company is fast outpacing traditional incumbents and driving innovation in a sector that lags behind. We are very bullish on the vision and strategy that Wahed is pursuing both globally and in the MENA region”
A couple of months back, the company launched it services in the UK to help solve the investing gap for British Muslims.
To ensure all investments are Sharia-compliant, Wahed has a full-time ethical review board. All securities are screened by investment management partners and ethical scholars.
Late last year, the company raised a $7m seed round from Cue Ball Capital, and BECO Capital to support the launch of its services in the UK. The funding came just months after a $5m funding round from unnamed strategic investors.
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