Rokibul Islam

A rapidly growing Islamic financial services provider has launched a low-cost digital investing solution to remove obstacles to ethical investing for the wider Islamic community in Australia.

Sydney-based Meezan Wealth Management said the solution, which is called Meezan Invest, would revolutionise the way Islamic Australians were able to invest and dramatically improve access to investment portfolios that have been certified as being Sharia-complaint.

Up until now Islamic investors have had to invest a minimum of as much as $50,000 to access an Islamically compliant investment portfolio, could be charged total of fees as much as 2.5% per annum and often had to wait a month or more for redemptions.

With Meezan Invest’s Islamic Growth model portfolio the minimum investment is only $5,000, fees are around half the amount of some competitors and an online investment account can be opened in as little as five minutes. Other investment portfolios will soon be added.

Meezan Wealth Management Founding Director Rokibul Islam said the Meezan Invest solution was established in response to demand from Australian Muslims who wanted a simple and easy-to-use way to grow their wealth via professional portfolio management, while staying true to their values.

“At the moment those with smaller lump sums are shut out from investing in Islamic compliant portfolios. And because putting money in interest generating accounts is forbidden for Muslims, they have limited options apart from just letting money sit there and be eroded by inflation.

“Our new solution is designed to open up investment opportunities to all Australian Muslims whether they have small or large amounts to invest and who believe they do not require personal financial advice.

“We know and understand what it means to be Muslim and living in Australia, and the challenges faced when it comes to growing your wealth Islamically. For decades Muslims have faced the tough choice of having to compromise their faith when dealing with financial institutions in Australia. That has now changed,” Mr Islam said.

The Meezan Islamic Growth model portfolio targets a return of CPI plus 4.5% p.a. from a portfolio of 10-30 Australian and international holdings predominantly made up of mid to large cap shares and alternative investments.

The portfolio is managed by Lifespan Financial Planning’s Investment Committee which has more than 80 years combined investment experience. Meezan engages IdealRatings to filter out any shares that are not Shariah compliant, such as those from companies involved with adult entertainment, alcohol production and sales, cinema, conventional financial services, defence, gambling, tobacco and pork.

The Meezan Invest solution is underpinned by Melbourne-based investment platform, OpenInvest. The company’s head of distribution, Ravi Verma, said that OpenInvest was proud to be partnering with a firm like Meezan that was widely respected in its community. Meezan Wealth also offers Islamic superannuation and home finance solutions.

“We believe all Australians deserve access to the benefits of professional investing and are excited that this is now being made available to Australian Muslims in a way that is consistent with their religious principles,” Mr Verma said.

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Co-founder and CEO of OpenInvest, Andrew Varlamos, says: “Since launching in November, there has been amazing interest among self-directed investors, and especially self-managed super fund (SMSF) trustees, in our platform that offers unprecedented access to the resources and expertise of leading investment managers.

“To take advantage of this keen interest, now is the right time to appoint Ravi and Phoebe into these important positions where they can play key roles in growing the business.

“Ravi has more than 25 years’ experience in various consultative and distribution roles in accountancy, advisory and the investment management industry in Australia and the UK. He will promote the OpenInvest marketplace to accountants and advisers as a logical solution for their self-directed clients, particularly SMSF trustees.

“Phoebe has tremendous experience helping self-directed investors via the online provision of information and resources, joining from the Constant Investor where she headed Operations and Client Services. Before that, she had senior roles at the Eureka Report and the Business Spectator.”

Verma says: “I tremendously excited to be joining the OpenInvest team. In a post Royal Commission world where people are looking for expert advice from an unbiased source, OpenInvest provides an excellent solution to many individuals who simply don’t know where to find information and, when they do, whether they can trust it.”

Kohler says: “OpenInvest opens up a new avenue for SMSF trustees, in particular, to find high-quality investment managers and then determine which manager best suits their investment goals. The opportunity to market such a valuable investment platform will be both challenging and extremely fulfilling.”

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