KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Waqf Foundation (YWM) intends to collaborate with Eq8 Capital Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Kenanga Investors Bhd, to launch the world's first waqf-featured Exchange Traded Fund (Waqf ETF), extending waqf initiatives to an international audience.
The Waqf ETF is an Islamic Unit Trust investment product incorporating a waqf component, whereby investors commit 50 per cent of generated income as waqf donations, with the remaining 50 per cent distributed back to investors as investment returns.
Through this collaboration, YWM will be named as the waqf institution acting as the Waqf Manager for the Waqf ETF fund.
"As the Waqf Manager, every waqf fund received by YWM will be distributed across various sectors such as health, education, food security, green energy, and others, allowing the benefits to be enjoyed by a larger community holistically," it said.
YWM said the Waqf ETF is likely to be listed on Bursa Malaysia within the year.
"This differs from the two products previously launched by YWM, where prospective investors could only invest through fund distributors authorised by Kenanga Investors," it said.
Previously, YWM collaborated with Kenanga Investors to create two Islamic Unit Trust investment products with a waqf element, where a portion of the income generated from the investment was donated by investors as waqf.