Is Wahed FTSE USA Shariah ETF (HLAL) Halal?

Our Analysis

HLAL is Wahed's flagship U.S. equity ETF and, with SPUS, one of the two default building blocks of a halal U.S. stock portfolio. It tracks the FTSE USA Shariah Index, which takes the broad U.S. large- and mid-cap universe and applies FTSE's Shariah methodology: remove companies in impermissible sectors (conventional finance, alcohol, gambling, tobacco) and remove companies that breach the debt and interest-income ratio limits. What remains is a screened basket of roughly 200-plus companies, heavily weighted toward technology, healthcare, and communication services, with top holdings such as Apple, Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet, and Tesla.

Like SPUS, what makes HLAL trustworthy is governance rather than branding. Wahed maintains a Shariah supervisory board that vets the index methodology and audits the holdings, and the fund publishes a purification ratio so investors can cleanse the small amount of incidental interest income that even screened companies earn. That transparency — disclosing the residual and quantifying the purification — is the hallmark of a properly run Shariah fund.

The natural question is SPUS versus HLAL. Both are genuinely compliant; the distinction is the underlying index. SPUS screens the S&P 500 specifically; HLAL screens the broader FTSE USA universe, so it reaches a little further down the cap spectrum. In practice their large-cap technology cores overlap heavily, and either works as a single core U.S. holding. Compare the expense ratios, the exact holdings, and the published purification ratios, then choose the methodology you are most comfortable with. As always, hold it long-term, apply the purification, and avoid margin and short-selling.

Business Activity Screen

A passive ETF managed by Wahed tracking the FTSE USA Shariah Index — a Shariah-screened basket of roughly 200+ U.S. large- and mid-cap companies, with a strong weighting toward technology, healthcare, and communication services. Top holdings include Apple, Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet, and Tesla.

The FTSE Shariah methodology removes impermissible sectors (conventional finance, alcohol, gambling, tobacco) and companies breaching AAOIFI-style debt and interest-income ratios. Wahed's Shariah supervisory board oversees the methodology and audits the fund; a purification ratio is published for the small residual non-compliant income.

Scholars' & Screeners' Positions

Published positions, cited as stated. Screeners can reach different conclusions on the same company because of ratio timing and methodology differences — we report the disagreement rather than flatten it.

• Wahed Shariah Supervisory Board

  Oversees the FTSE USA Shariah Index methodology, audits HLAL's holdings, and certifies the fund Shariah-compliant, with purification guidance for residual income.

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• Mainstream view

  A scholar-supervised, FTSE-Shariah-screened U.S. equity ETF is permissible passive exposure for Muslim investors, subject to performing purification and avoiding leverage and short-selling.

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Purification

HLAL holds screened companies that still earn small amounts of incidental interest, so Wahed publishes a purification ratio. Donate that percentage of your distributions to charity to cleanse the residual non-compliant income — our purification calculator automates this.

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