Cerulli

#Malaysia's Lead in Shariah #Funds

Malaysia remains a frontrunner in Southeast Asia's Shariah fund market, with $24 billion in Islamic mutual fund assets under management for the year ending May 2017. Global analytics firm Cerulli believes that Malaysia will preserve its pole position in Southeast Asia, while Indonesia will take a longer time to catch up, given the bias toward domestic investments. Malaysia's lead is largely due to its government's support of expertise in regional and Shariah investments. In January 2017, the Malaysian Securities Commission unveiled a five-year Islamic and wealth management blueprint to become an international Islamic finance center. Global firms have been encouraged to set up Islamic units in Malaysia through tax incentives and signing mutual recognition agreements with Dubai, Hong Kong, Ireland, and Luxembourg. The country is also embracing financial technology with new initiatives and regulatory support. Kuala Lumpur-based Farringdon Group recently launched a Robo-adviser service which follows Shariah investment guidelines.

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