Ethis Global Sdn Bhd, which operates “regulated” Shariah-compliant, “ethical” and impact focused investment crowdfunding platforms in Indonesia and Malaysia and social finance platform GlobalSadaqah, recently revealed that it finalized an RM6.8 million (appr. $1.62 million) pre-Series A round. The proceeds have will be allocated towards the firm’s “various group entities by strategic and selected angel investors.”
As mentioned in the announcement, this latest investment round comes soon after Ethis’ recent appointment of Amran Bin Mohd as the Chairperson of the newly established Ethis Investment Management.
As noted in the update, Ethis’ round included contributions from industry leaders and executives from Islamic finance and fund management across various jurisdictions. Investors in the company include corporate professional Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee, and Daud Vicary Abdullah, an experienced Islamic finance and banking professional. Dubai-based Khurram Hilal also took part in the round.
Chairman of Advisors, Ethis Group, Datuk Mohd Radzif Mohd Yunus noted that their “global ambition and focus on impact has attracted new shareholders who bring tremendous experience and relationships to our group. This we believe will propel growth for years to come.”
In 2022, Ethis intends “to expand its offerings in Indonesia and Malaysia to include agriculture and Waqf issuers and projects,” the announcement revealed.
The proceeds from the round will be channeled towards scaling operations in existing markets, acquiring appropriate licenses and setting up the business in new jurisdictions. The funds will also be used to “develop new technology as part of the group’s planned milestones leading up to their full Group Series A round where Ethis targets to raise US$10 million from institutional and strategic corporate investors.”
Established in 2014 as a private investment club in Singapore, Ethis is a Malaysia-headquartered Islamic Fintech “focused on sustainable and impactful crowd-investments, financing and donations.” It is “operating regulated platforms in Malaysia and Indonesia and has also secured regulatory approvals in Dubai and Qatar,” the update confirmed.
Ethis Indonesia has been operating since 2015, “matching retail investors from more than 50 countries into impact-investment campaigns, initially focused on property development for social housing and more recently introducing SME supply-chain projects.”
Founder of Ethis Group, Umar Munshi remarked:
“This synergy, we believe, will be the key to our growth and success. Ethis is on track to prove the commercial viability of our high-impact fintech model based on Islamic finance principles.”
