IslamicFinance.de

According to Crescent Wealth managing director Talal Yassine, Australia should consider Islamic finance to bridge its infrastructure gap. In his opinion, if super funds continue to spurn local infrastructure investment in favour of offshore assets, Islamic finance could provide a solution. Australians who think it may be hard to source Islamic debt need only look at the UK, which in 2014 became the first Western country to issue sukuk. Yassine believes that the Australian Government is equally well placed to issue sukuks. Local financial institutions, such as National Australia Bank and Crescent Wealth have expertise in building compliant Islamic debt structures and could be used in these funding initiatives.

Australian Islamic investment company Crescent Wealth and KAF Investment Funds have jointly launched the KAF Australian Islamic Property Fund (KAIPF). Crescent Wealth corporate strategy director Omar Khan said the fund would achieve 9-10% annual return to investors, a target driven by the appetite of Malaysian investors for Australian property. The KAIPF is Malaysia’s first fund that provides non-institutional investors direct access to Australian commercial property. The launch of KAIPF brings the total number of funds under KAF to 18, with close to RM2.3 billion worth of assets under management.

The fund manager behind the first private Islamic superannuation fund in the world, Crescent Wealth, has passed $100 million in funds under management. The benchmark figure was passed after the Australia-based group reported a 245 per cent growth in funds under management for the 2015 financial year with the group tapping into demand for ethical Islamic investment products. Crescent Wealth launched the first private Islamic superannuation fund in the world in 2013 growing fund members close to ten-fold between the 2014 and 2015 financial years to reach 4200 members, with an expectation of further growth due to interest from overseas investors.

Australia-based Islamic fund manager Crescent Wealth is now managing over $100 Million in Islamic Super and Investments. This makes Crescent Wealth not only one of Australia’s fastest growing Super funds, but also one of the best performing with many of their funds market leaders in their respective sectors. This is a remarkable achievement for a company that launched the world’s first private Islamic pension fund a little over 2 years ago. Crescent Wealth’s International Equity Fund was ranked as the #1 Top Performing Ethical Fund returning 27.9% after fees (ranking by Financial Express for the 2015 financial year). Since its launch on 22 February 2013 to 30 June 15, the same fund has achieved a great total return of 60.65%.

Crescent Wealth has developed its own platform for its four investment options and has appointed Corporate Combined Superannuation (CCSL) as trustee. The Shariah-compliant funds - Australian equities, international equities, income fund and Australian infrastructure and property - were previously only available on the Association of Independently Owned Financial Planners Personal Choice Private e-wrap platform, after they were launched late last year. The company is also in talks with industry super funds to white-label the product as an ultra-ethical investment option. Although the product follows Islamic finance principles, the company expects the majority of its clients to be attracted to its ultra-ethical investing philosophy

Talal Yassine, founder of Islamic investment fund Crescent Wealth, believes Australia's Muslim population offers growth potential for sharia-compliant financial products. Crescent Wealth's criteria exclude investing in banks or other financial stocks as well as companies that have investments in alcohol, gambling, pornography, arms or the production of pork. They also consider the companies' debt-to-asset ratio, receivables outstanding and levels of cash or liquid assets. Yassine believes Crescent Wealth will attract funds from the vast Muslim community in Malaysia, Indonesia and, potentially, China.

Trevor Rowe has been appointed to the advisory board of Islamic funds manager Crescent Wealth. Rowe is chairman of BrisConnections, executive chairman of Rothschild Australia and chairman of UGL, among other things. Crescent Wealth managing director Talal Yassine said Rowe had been ''appointed for his experience and ability to offer high-level insight and counsel on strategic opportunities''.

The first superannuation fund that follows Islamic principles has been recently launched in Australia. The issuer of the fund (called "Personal Choice") is the wealth management company Crescent Wealth in cooperation with the Association of Independently Owned Financial Professional's.

A partnership deal between Australian Islamic wealth manager Crescent Wealth and Bank of London and The Middle East (BLME) was signed. The deal enables Australian retail investors to participate in the Islamic bonds market. The global market for Sukuk is estimated at $150bn. The partnership with BLME marks Australia as a viable growth market for Islamic funds management.

Read more on: http://www.investmenteurope.net/investment-europe/news/2215997/crescent-...

Australian fund manager Crescent Wealth intends the launch of the country’s first Islamic pension fund by December. According to its managing director, between 15 to 30 percent of it shall be allocated in property. The goal is to build the fund to between A$4 billion ($4.03 billion) and A$6 billion in five years. This accomplishment should be possible due to lack of available Shariah-compliant financial products in Australia.

Crescent Wealth launched the first Islamic Australian equity fund, the Crescent Australian Equity Fund (CAEF) on October 6 and the firm is now searching to partner with Malaysian institutions seeking exposure to Australian markets.
Talal Yassine, Crescent Wealth Founder and Managing Director, stated that Crescent Wealth is inventing the significant growth opportunity for our industry to become a leading hub for Islamic investing, particularly in their own region where 62 per cent of the world's Muslims reside.