India’s BSE launches Islamic stock index for Muslims

Mumbai, India (AHN) – India’s Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has unveiled an Islamic index, Tasis Shariah 50, which is formed by using guidelines from Indian Shariah advisory board.

The index is made up of companies that are in line with the Islamic legal code. The launch came after studies claimed that Indian Muslims have been excluded from country’s financial sector.

Muslims are excluded because Islamic Law themselves doesn’t allow people to invest in companies, which sell forbidden things like tobacco, arms and alcohol.

It also disallows them to invest in those companies, which derive significant profit from interest. The index is formed with the intention to make it the basis for other Shariah-compliant financial products.

BSE Managing Director and Chief Executive Madhu Kannan hopes that Islamic and other “socially responsible” investors in India and abroad will be attracted with this index.

“This index will create increased awareness of financial investments among the masses and help enhance financial inclusion,” he said in a statement.

“The index will also build a base for licensing for the construction of sharia-compliant financial products, including mutual funds, ETFs (exchange traded funds) and structured products”, Madhu added.

The BSE has so many listed Sharia-compliant stocks that Pakistan and all Middle Eastern Muslim countries did not have, even if they are put them together. Mumbai-based Tasis will screen the companies to be included in the index.

Its board members include legal experts and Islamic scholars.

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