Malaysia

UOB Malaysia launches new Sharia-compliant wealth management solution

The solution is made up of Sharia-compliant savings and fixed deposit accounts, Takaful wealth protection plans, as well as global and domestic Islamic unit trust investments. The products come in three categories – wealth preservation, wealth protection and wealth accumulation.

A company statement said, “The launch of UOB Malaysia’s Islamic wealth management solutions helps meet the growing demand for Sharia-compliant investments."

UOB Malaysia managing director and country head of personal financial services, Ronnie Lim, added that the bank's Islamic wealth management solutions were carefully structured to help customers select the product that is most relevant to their needs. “For example, young professionals looking to build their nest egg may have less disposable income to invest and may prefer a savings account with a higher-than-average profit to save more quickly."

“Wealth accumulation and wealth protection solutions such as unit trusts or Takaful products may be more suitable for young families planning for their children’s future education or individuals looking to build their retirement fund," Lim added. "With this in mind, we focused on developing three core wealth management solutions to help customers easily select products and services that meet their long term financial goals."

UOB Malaysia’s Islamic wealth management solutions have also been created for clients whose priority is ethical and socially responsible investing. 

Lim explains that, “Similar to other socially responsible funds within the ESG universe, Sharia screening will filter out sectors such as gambling, weapons and tobacco companies, as well as those companies that are over-leveraged or have unproductive cash piles. This makes our Sharia-compliant financial solutions suitable for investors who look for ethical or socially responsible returns from their investments."

Customers are also able to shield their savings against foreign exchange fluctuations while earning profit through the UOB Foreign Currency Call Account-i or earn higher profit on their savings through the FD Plus-i, which offers tenures ranging from one to 12 months.

UOB Malaysia executive director and country head of Islamic Banking, Mohd Fhauzi Muridan, said the bank’s wealth protection solution included the UOB Smart Secure Takaful, which offers both protection and investment returns. “The UOB Smart Secure Takaful is a regular limited contribution plan that combines an ordinary Takaful plan with an investment-linked Takaful plan to offer customers protection, savings and the potential for higher returns through investment."  

Fhauzi added that in selecting the most suitable unit trust to meet each customer’s needs, UOB Malaysia implements its risk-first approach to fund selection. This proprietary method allows clients to ensure their unit trust selection matches their financial goals and risk tolerance level.

According to the Securities Commission, assets under management (AUM) of Islamic funds based in Malaysia rose by more than 48 percent since the end of 2016.