- Aims to make residential property investing more accessible through fractional ownership
- Pilot offering raises US$242k from 928 investors as platform targets at least eight more property listings
Wahed, the Islamic fintech platform founded in New York City in 2015 with its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, UAE, has launched Malaysia’s first fractional real estate investment platform. Operating under the Securities Commission Malaysia’s Regulatory Sandbox, the platform enables retail investors to invest in residential properties from as little as US$118 (RM500) without taking on a mortgage.
Wahed X Sdn Bhd is a registered market operator with the Securities Commission Malaysia and one of six participants selected for the regulator’s inaugural Regulatory Sandbox, which provides a supervised environment for innovative capital market products to be tested with defined investor safeguards. According to Wahed, it is currently the first active fractional real estate investment platform and one of two in the sandbox offering alternative real estate investments.
“We have spent the past year building this product the right way. Now, we are finally offering it under the SC’s Regulatory Sandbox because we believe that trust is key to any new asset class,” said Zayan Yassin (pic), CEO, Wahed Malaysia.
“Affordability sets the scene, but the real shift is in investor behaviour,” he said. “Malaysians have always understood property, but a new generation increasingly views it as an investment that generates rental income and builds equity rather than simply owning a physical home. Younger investors are the clearest example. Many rent by choice, seeking ethical, Shariah-compliant investments where they can start small and scale up over time. The Regulatory Sandbox has provided the right environment to introduce this new investment class with appropriate investor safeguards. What was missing was a proper structure for that demand to flow into.”
He added, “Malaysian investors have understood property for generations, but an increasing number today are priced out of the market. A deposit alone requires hundreds of thousands of ringgit, often tying buyers to a 30-year mortgage. The pilot showed us the market was ready. Today we are opening it to everyone.”
Ahead of the public launch, Wahed completed a pilot involving a residential unit at Southkey Mosaic in Johor Bahru. The offering raised US$242,000 (RM1 million) from 928 investors in six days, with an average investment of about RM1,100. Since then, Wahed has completed fundraising for a second property, SkySuites KLCC, and plans to list at least eight more properties over the next 12 months.
[RM1 = US$0.25]
The platform enables investors to browse available properties, review independent valuations and projected rental yields, and select the property they wish to invest in. The minimum investment is US$118 across all properties listed on the platform. Wahed manages the acquisition, property management, tenant sourcing and quarterly income distributions on behalf of investors.
Investors receive returns through quarterly rental income during the holding period, which is expected to be around five years, as well as any capital appreciation when the property is sold. The platform is structured without debt or interest-bearing financing in line with Shariah principles.
Unlike a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), where investments are pooled into a managed fund, Wahed allows investors to select the specific property they wish to invest in, with returns linked to the performance of that individual asset.
“Malaysia has always had a strong property investment culture, and making it easier for people to access this asset helps broaden participation,” said Mohsin Siddiqui (pic), group CEO, Wahed. “The pilot demonstrated strong demand, with close to a thousand investors participating in under a week. Investors can choose a Shariah-compliant stake in a real, income-generating property with full visibility of the investment before committing their funds.”
Malaysia is Wahed’s third real estate market. The company has previously completed 20 property transactions in the United Kingdom, raising £7.2 million, and five transactions in the United States, raising US$2.2 million. Globally, Wahed serves more than 450,000 investors across 130 countries, holds licences in nine regulatory jurisdictions and manages more than US$2 billion in assets.
It is backed by Saudi Aramco’s Wa’ed Ventures and Qatar Development Bank and has raised a total of US$95 million since its founding.