First ever open-ended Sharia’ah compliant fund debuts

Head of Financial Services CT Holdings /Director, Comtrust Asset Management Ltd Sheyantha Abeykoon (right)  shakes hands with ADL Capital Ltd CEO/Managing Director Ishrat Rauff. Others from left  ADL Capital Head of Corporate Finance Ahamed Ishrath Mohideen, Head of Operations & Structured Finance  Sabri Abdul Cader, Comtrust Asset Management General Manager P. Asokan and  Senior Fund Manager Anita Muttukumaru

The Crescent i-Fund, the first-ever open-ended Shari’ah-compliant Fund investing primarily in Sri Lankan equities, was recently granted approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Sri Lanka.

A joint initiative of Comtrust Asset Management and Adl Capital Ltd., the Fund is expected to fill the vacuum created by the paucity of investment opportunities in the Sri Lankan stock market for the Shari’ah conscious investor.  

Comtrust Asset Management is one of the pioneer Unit Trust Management companies to be registered with the SEC and has a senior management team with extensive experience in the Sri Lankan equity markets.

It is a member of the CT Holdings Group, one of the largest listed conglomerates on the Colombo Stock Exchange, with interest spanning retail, food and beverage, manufacturing, plantations, property development and financial services. Some of the companies in the group include Cargills (Ceylon), Lanka Floortiles and Lanka Walltile, Horana Plantations, CT Land Development, CT Smith Stockbrokers and CT Properties.

Adl Capital Ltd (Adl) is registered by the SEC as an Investment Manager. Its team of qualified professionals has extensive experience in the burgeoning Islamic finance industry with the combined experience of the key personnel in this industry spanning over a decade.

The senior executive team at Adl has also been involved in equity markets, which enabled the company to actively contribute to the development of this pioneering effort.

Against the backdrop of an upward trend in economic indicators, the increased number of IPOs witnessed recently has expanded the number of companies listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange.  Many of these companies conform to parameters prescribed by contemporary Shari’ah scholars. This has paved the way for the launch of the Crescent i-Fund, drawn by the synergies of the two institutions in their respective fields of proficiencies.

Sheyantha Abeykoon, Head of the Financial Services Companies at the CT Holdings group said “This fund is targeted at a niche segment of the market where we have observed increasing levels of interests as the universe of Shari’ah compliant securities has expanded”. He further added that “Having ventured into the fund management business via the acquisition of Comtrust a few years ago, we feel that the environment is now conducive to rapidly grow this business and further complement our larger businesses in stockbroking and investment banking”.

According to Ishrat Rauff, Managing Director/CEO of Adl Capital Limited, “The Crescent i-Fund will cater to the investment needs of professionals, high net worth individuals, charitable institutions, expatriates and corporates who wish to introduce a new Shari’ah-compliant product into their investment portfolio.  Investors with excess liquidity could avail themselves of the expert management that the Fund offers”.

P. Asokan, General Manager of Comtrust Asset Management said that “The investment objective of the fund would be to accumulate value over the long term, by focusing on businesses with sustainable business models and management teams with a proven track record”.

A distinguished panel of scholars of domestic and international repute will comprise the Shari’ah committee, who will ensure that the operations of the Fund will be in accordance with Shari’ah principles. Furthermore, Deutsche Bank will act as the Trustee on behalf of the investors.