(Falls Church, Virginia, 7/12/16) — A leader in Islamic finance in the United States announced today the successful completion of an external Shariah audit and verification of its policies and procedures. Azzad Asset Management, investment advisor to the Azzad Funds, became the first firm in the United States to obtain such a verification with a similar audit in 2015.
The audit was conducted by UK-based Islamic Finance Advisory and Assurance Services (IFAAS), a specialist in Islamic accounting that operates according to guidelines established by the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI). IFAAS’s AAOIFI-certified auditors evaluated Azzad’s Ethical and Shariah Investment Guidelines, in addition to the effectiveness of Azzad’s internal verification procedures and quality controls. They also examined how Azzad calculates purification and zakah totals for clients.
The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) is the primary standard-setting body for the Islamic finance industry globally.
Azzad abides by its Seven Tenets of Halal Investing, which follow AAOIFI guidelines for best practices for Islamic financial services companies. The third tenet is “Due Diligence and Verification,” which includes taking steps such as obtaining the IFAAS audit to ensure the correct application of authentic Islamic finance rules.
ABOUT AZZAD
Azzad Asset Management, investment advisor to the Azzad Funds and sponsor of the Azzad Ethical Wrap Program, is committed to providing investment services designed to help people enjoy optimum performance without compromising their values. Azzad is a member of the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment, the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, and the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions. The firm, based outside Washington, DC, is a registered investment advisor with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
ABOUT IFAAS
Founded in 2007, IFAAS (Islamic Finance Advisory & Assurance Services) is an independent specialist consultancy at the forefront of the dynamic Islamic finance industry with offices in Birmingham (UK), Paris (France), and Manama (Bahrain). IFAAS provides a range of professional bespoke advisory services to a wide range of financial institutions and industry stakeholders in Europe, Middle East, Asia, Africa and the Americas.
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Contact: Azzad Investment Communications Director Joshua Brockwell, 703-207-7005, ext. 109, joshua@azzad.net
Opinions expressed are those of the author or fund manager, are subject to change, are not guaranteed and should not be considered recommendations to buy or sell any security and should not be considered investment advice.
Fund holdings and sector allocations are subject to change and are not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Click here for Azzad Ethical Fund current top 10 holdings. Click here for the Azzad Wise Capital Fund current top 10 holdings.
Past performance does not guarantee future results.
The Azzad Ethical Fund is non-diversified and may invest a larger percentage of its assets in fewer companies exposing it to more volatility and/or market risk than diversified funds. The Fund may not achieve its objective and/or could lose money on your investment in the Fund. Stock markets and investments in individual stocks can decline significantly in response to issuer, market, economic, political, regulatory, geographical, and other conditions. Investments in mid-cap companies can be more volatile than investments in larger companies. Investments in growth companies can be more sensitive to the company’s earnings and more volatile than the stock market in general. Because the portfolio may invest substantial amount of its asset in issuers located in a single country or in a limited number of countries, it may be more volatile that a portfolio that is more geographically diversified. See the prospectus for more details about risks.
Investments in smaller and medium sized companies involve additional risks such as limited liquidity and greater volatility. Investments in debt securities typically decrease in value when interest rates rise. This risk is usually greater for longer-term debt securities. Investments in lower rated and non-rated securities present a great risk of loss to principal and interest than higher rated securities.
The Azzad Wise Capital Fund is non-diversified with a high concentration of securities in the financial sector which can expose the Fund to more volatility and/or market risk than diversified funds. The Fund may not achieve its objective and/or could lose money on your investment in the Fund. The Fund mainly invests in securities issues by foreign entities which expose the Fund to country specific risks such as market, economic, political, regulatory, geographical, and other risks. The Fund intends to invest in certain instruments that may be illiquid. As a result, if the Fund receives large amount of redemptions, the Fund may be forced to sell such illiquid investments at a significant loss to be able to meet such redemption requests. See the prospectus for more details about risks.
