Investing for 2 Billion Muslims with Kareem Tabbaa, Chief Product Officer of Wahed
We hear a lot about ESG investing, Catholicism-based investing, and more in the wealth & asset management world. But what about Earth’s 2 billion Muslims? In a religion that disallows interest and has plenty of restrictions (alcohol, etc.), finding shariah-compliant investments is not easy. Enter Wahed, a halal investment platform for everyday Muslims.
We sat down with Kareem Tabbaa, Chief Product Officer of Wahed to learn more about this product fresh off their $25M fundraise from Saudi Aramco.
Wahed allows everyday Muslims to build wealth by investing in companies in compliance with their faith. Wahed’s portfolios include a combination of Wahed-made ETFs, Gold, Cash, and Sukuks, which are a shariah-compliant instrument similar to debt that pays revenue share instead of interest.
In today’s episode, Kareem discusses:
- His background
- The unexpected role Apple played in starting Wahed
- What their investment portfolios look like
- Their first customers and initial growth strategy
- The massive, underserved Muslim market
- And much more
Kareem joined Wahed in 2017 as Chief Growth Officer and moved to Chief Product Officer in 2018. Before Wahed, Kareem worked in London and his home country of Jordan at companies such as HeadStart Advisers, Diversified Retail Trading, and Goldman Sachs. Kareem graduated from London’s Cass Business School with 1st-Class Honors where he wrote his dissertation on the effect of sovereign credit rating changes on the local stock markets in the MENA region.
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Ryan Zauk
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Ryan Zauk is an MBA Candidate at The Wharton School, where he runs the Wharton FinTech Podcast. After graduation, Ryan will join Morgan Stanley’s Menlo Park Office focused on technology. He has a passion for music, media, and all things FinTech.
You can reach him at rzauk@wharton.upenn.edu or on Twitter.
