Malaysia-based ethical investment and social finance platform operator Ethis Group said Monday it will be launching EthisX as part of its global expansion plan.

Approved by the Capital Market Authority (CMA) – the Sultanate of Oman’s regulator and supervisor of the capital market and insurance sector – EthisX is managed by Ethis Investment Platform LLC based out of Muscat, the Sultanate of Oman, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,  Ethis said in a statement.

EthisX is unique in that it acts as a first-of-its-kind cross-border ethical private capital marketplace able to offer direct shariah-compliant investments into small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) companies and special purpose vehicle (SPV) projects from around the globe.

“In our focus to #CirculateGood with our global community of impact investors and donors, we are committed to working alongside Oman CMA towards a successful global cross-border marketplace. With the approval of CMA, companies from inside and outside Oman can apply to raise funding. This, in turn, allows global investors access to shariah-compliant,
impactful and sustainable investments in emerging and developed markets like never before,” said Mohamed Shehzad Bin Mohamed Islam, Chief Executive Officer of Ethis Investment Platform LLC (EIP).

According to him, EthisX will be rolled out in geographical phases starting with Oman.

“The platform allows companies to raise funds through equity crowdfunding (ECF) and peer-2-peer (P2P) financing that includes sukuk and micro-sukuk. For P2P, EthisX is focusing on invoice financing, asset-backed financing, working capital financing, and Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) financing. ECF issuances will focus on startups and growth companies particularly in the tech sector,” he said.

According to him, EthisX will be leveraging on the immediate transaction volume from other Ethis platforms, targeting to grow transaction value per month by at least 10 times from current by the fourth quarter of 2022.

“We want to push our market expansion plan through EthisX as aggressively as possible, and we would like to express our gratitude towards Oman CMA for believing in our vision and execution ability,” he added.

EthisX, regulated by Oman Capital Market Authority, is the first platform of its kind catering to shariah-compliant and impact-driven investors globally. Its platform provides investors and funders direct access to companies, issuers, and social campaigns from around the world with a focus on Asia and the Gulf region.

“Oman is a bridge between emerging regions with the potential to extend to other parts of the world, and has great potential to be an emerging regional hub for Islamic finance and fintech. As the regulator and supervisor of the capital market and insurance sector in Oman, we value CMA’s acceptance of EthisX as a platform that curates the capital marketplace. We aim to have EthisX become a valuable contributor towards realising OMAN VISION 2040, which emphasises the country’s economic development that is anchored to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),

“For the Group, EthisX as our next step forward makes the best strategic business sense as Ethis is amongst the early adopters of crowdfunding as an investment marketplace and is an Islamic fintech proponent,” said Amran Mohd, Chairman of EIP.

Umar Munshi, Co-Founder and Group Managing Director of Ethis elaborated :“As one of the pioneers of shariah-compliant crowdfunding, Ethis not only has proof of concept but also substantial experience and knowledge through the management of its platforms which prioritize deals with social impact so that the community can enjoy the benefits of their investments.”

Ethis operates crowd-investment platforms approved by regulators in Indonesia, Malaysia and now Oman. Its platforms serve ordinary people, high-net-worth individuals, corporate, and government entities. It built its initial track record from 2016 to 2020 in social housing in Indonesia where its global community of investors from more than 50 countries funded development projects to build close to 10,000 homes.

Since the onset of COVID-19, it has launched popular new investment products, including short-term, high-yield supply-chain financing projects in Indonesia and equity investment in ‘future tech’ startups in Malaysia. Its social finance marketplace GlobalSadaqah plays a vital role in matching donors and Islamic economy players to better distribute social finance and zakat to non-governmental organization (NGOs) and social enterprises.

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