What is a Shariah Supervisory Board (SSB)?

A Shariah Supervisory Board is a group of Islamic Finance scholars/experts appointed to oversee an Islamic Financial Institution’s products and operations. It should consist of three members with at least one member who is a Mufti, a Muslim legal expert who is empowered to give rulings on religious matters.

They are responsible for issuing certifications and fatwas for the products and services of the organization. The SSB will also receive our annual Shariah Audit report, published by our independent certified Shariah auditors who oversee and ensure that these transactions occur following Islamic Finance law.

Why is an SSB necessary?

As part of our Shariah Governance, which strictly adheres to the AAOIFI standards, this is one of three layers that Manzil is implementing to continually build and establish trust and credibility amongst our users and clients. These three layers consist of:

An active three-member Shariah Supervisory Board

An Internal Shariah Auditor

An Independent Auditor

Once established, these three layers of governance provide no doubt in the consumer’s mind that not only are the products constructed in line with the Shariah guidelines but that they are transacted accordingly.

How did Manzil select their SSB members?

When selecting the SSB members, we wanted to ensure it was a group that is representative of the diverse makeup of the Muslim community in Canada. This includes but is not limited to the many schools of thought that are practiced, multiple languages that are spoken, and cultural sensitivities that need to be accounted for.

We also wanted to have members who had experience working in the Western world and are familiar with the intricacies of their conventional finance and banking systems. They must understand that we will have to think outside of the box when creating products while adhering to our local regulatory frameworks and tax legislation. Additionally, having experience working within the FinTech space was another criterion we focused on.

Who has been appointed onto Manzil’s SSB?

We are thrilled to appoint the following members as part of Manzil’s newly created Shariah Supervisory Board:

Mufti Faraz Adam

Mufti Faraz Adam is a globally recognized expert in Islamic Finance, Islamic Social Finance & Islamic FinTech. He is the Managing Associate of the National Zakat Foundation Worldwide and an advisor to several Zakat institutions worldwide. He is also an active Shariah advisor for Islamic financial institutions. He is on several global Shariah boards in countries such as Switzerland, Bahrain, Singapore, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom and the United States. He has published over a dozen research papers in contemporary Islamic Finance matters and has published many chapters in Islamic FinTech.

Mufti Faraz completed a six-year Alimiyyah program in the UK & qualified as a Mufti in South Africa under Mufti Ebrahim Desai. He completed a Master’s degree in Islamic Finance, Banking and Management from Newman University, UK And completed an MBA specializing in Fintech from the University of Michigan, US. Additionally, he has attained various finance-industry qualifications such as the IFQ, CIFE and Certified Shariah Advisor and Auditor (CSAA). He is currently an ACCA candidate and is studying to become a qualified Independent Financial Advisor with the CISI.

Dr. Shaher Abbas

Dr. Shaher brings more than 15 years of hands-on experience in Islamic banking and finance covering Shariah Compliance, Product Development, and Shariah Audit across different Islamic finance disciplines. He has designed, developed and launched over 100 Islamic financial products in the Americas, Europe, GCC and Africa.

Dr. Shaher is an AAOIFI Certified Shariah Advisor and Auditor (CSAA) and holds a Ph.D. in Islamic Financial Engineering from Durham University in the UK.

Being a leading figure in the Islamic finance industry, Shaher is a popular speaker and lecturer at industry events and prestigious universities, including Durham University (UK), Aston University (UK) and ESC Lille (France).

Dr. Mohamed Anouar Gadhoum

Dr. Mohamed Anouar Gadhoum has demonstrated cross-sectoral and multi-disciplinary expertise in Islamic Finance. He occupied various positions in reputable institutions such as BNP PARIBAS, Najmah, ISRA, and many others under multiple jurisdictions (i.e. Malaysia, UK, Tunisia, etc.). He also successfully manages teams and portfolios of consultancy and capacity building projects.

Founder of The International Islamic Training Institute (IIFTI) & African Islamic FinTech Summit (SAIFI), Dr. Gadhoum has a FinTech entrepreneurship mindset. It is the first to introduce a Shari’ah-compliant liquidity management solution based on Blockchain technology and Smart Contracts.

Dr. Mohamed Anouar is currently a Shari’ah Board Member and Advisor of reputable financial institutions offering Islamic financial services in Takaful & Retakaful, Micro-Finance and others.

Dr. Gadhoum holds a Ph.D. in Islamic Finance from The Global University of Islamic Finance — INCEIF (Malaysia) in addition to a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in jurisprudence and its foundations from Sharjah University (UAE). He speaks three languages (English, French, and Arabic).