Award winning and leading provider of Sharia Compliant and Socially Responsible investment solutions
Our approach
At Simply Ethical we pride ourselves on providing clients with a clear focus on achieving their financial objectives in an ethical way. Our philosophy is based upon a shared view of how we as a company believe we should invest on behalf of our clients, focusing on meeting client needs over their time horizon and working with our clients to ensure they understand why they hold the investments they do.
We invest in Sharia compliant investments
We calculate Zakah on investments
We calculate purification amounts
Ethical investing
We want you to achieve financial success through positive values and good ethics. Our investment screening is designed to help keep your money away from business sectors and activities that have an adverse impact on our society. By doing that, we encourage the growth of more sustainable ways of doing business which have a positive impact on our society. We believe such investments will not only appeal to the socially responsible investors but also to people of various faiths. Adherence to these principles means that the investments offered are compatible with the teachings of the Islamic faith, therefore are Sharia compliant.
Our Ethical Committee reviews investments to ensure they meet to our Sharia Compliance and Socially Responsible investment criteria set in our Ethical Investment Policy Statement.
Seek investments
Healthcare
Medical solutions
Innovative technology
Clean energy
Sustainable products
Education
Avoid investments
Tobacco & Alcohol
Gambling & Entertainment
Weapons
Conventional financial services
Harmful products
Human rights abuses & Exploitation
Funds screening
All funds and ETFs we use in our investment portfolio are reviewed for Ethical and Sharia compliance. We assess funds on Sharia screening criteria, Sharia governance and ongoing monitoring system amongst other important considerations.
Review Sharia certification
Sharia certificate for funds is reviewed to ensure it is certified by a reputable scholar(s) with relevant experience
Review Sharia screening criteria
We review how investments are screened for Sharia compliance
Review ongoing Sharia compliance
Ongoing Sharia compliance and monitoring system is reviewed
Direct equities screening
At Simply Ethical, we are dedicated to constant improvement in Sharia compliance where and when we can. For those investing in direct equities (companies), we adopt a much tighter criteria than that followed by the broader industry.
After conducting business screening that excludes a number of industries, sectors and activities as stated in our Ethical Investment Policy Statement, we apply financial screening on companies that have passed the business screening criteria. A company must meet all of the following criteria to be deemed compliant:
Business Screening
Exclude non-compliant businesses
Debt to Total Assets
≤5%
Company debt
Net borrowing to Total Assets
≤0%
Net borrowing in the company
Cash to Market Capitalisation
≤30%
Cash in the company
Non-Compliant Income
≤2%
Non Sharia compliant income
Zakah & purification
Simply Ethical will calculate the Zakah percentages and the non-compliant income to be purified for all the relevant clients on an annual basis. Our methodology for Zakah calculation and purification calculation is explained in our Ethical Investment Policy Statement.
We calculate Zakah on investments
We calculate purification amounts
We inform you of your charitable obligations
Sharia certification
The Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB) is a Middle East-based firm with an international scholarly platform of 37+ scholars, covering 4 major school of jurisprudences and spreading over 16 countries. SRB is licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain, and has been serving the Islamic financial industry for almost 20 years. SRB is committed to empowering Sharia compliance for businesses around the world. To learn more about SRB and its services, visit their website.
For the purpose of effective Sharia governance and supervision, two renowned and qualified Sharia scholars have been assigned. The Sharia Committee independently issues pronouncements, and these rulings are binding onus.
The two Shari’a scholars which have been assigned by SRB to make the Sharia Committee for Simply Ethical are Mufti Faraz Adam and Sheikh Muhammad Ahmad.
Our Ethical Policy and investment criteria
Our Ethical Policy and investment screening criteria have been approved as Sharia compliant
Zakah and purification calculations
The way we calculate Zakah and purification amounts has been verified as Sharia compliant
Our Investment Platforms
SRB are satisfied with our investment platform documentation and the way we invest money
Sharia advisers
Mufti Faraz Adam
Sheikh Muhammad Ahmad
FAQs
Zakah is a financial obligation that every Muslim must pay on certain assets that are at or above a certain minimum amount (Nisab) and have completed a holding period of 12 lunar months (Hawl).
Purification is the cleansing process which requires that any investment income that might have been generated from unlawful activities according to Sharia based investing principles be given to a charity. Sharia based investing allows some tolerance in non-compliant income. Based on AAOIFI Shari’ah standards, provided a company meets other Sharia standards (limitation on debt and cash) and has less than 5% of its income generated from prohibited activities, for example, interest received on company cash. The company may be deemed as Sharia compliant, provided that any income from non-compliant activities is given to a charity as a way of purification.
Our investments have been certified by Mufti Faraz Adam and Sheikh Muhammad Ahmad.
Shariyah Review Bureau conducts audit on Simply Ethical on an annual basis.
Our Sharia certificates can be verified on the following link. You would need the verification code, which can be found within our Sharia certificates issued by Shariyah Review Bureau.