Islamic Charity Fund Set for 2010 Debut
October 1, 2009 | Read Time: 1 minute
A new fund to manage Islamic charitable donations plans to start up in early 2010 and aims to raise $750-million from wealthy Muslims in its first year, Reuters reports.
The World Zakat Fund, an effort by the Malaysian government, has so far collected $50-million in “soft” commitments and hopes to pay annual returns of 10 to 15 percent, said Humayon Dar, chief executive of BMB Islamic, a financial consultant who is advising the fund. About two-thirds of the fund would be put toward social projects and businesses and investments, with the rest going to charities.
Some Islamic scholars argue that the concept of an interest-bearing fund violates the Muslim principle of zakat, or annual donations to the needy. “The priority is to give, not grow zakat,“ said Mohamad Akram Laldin, an adviser for British bank HSBC.
