JEDDAH, 9 March 2007 — The National Commercial Bank (NCB) has launched a new Shariah-compliant fund offering a new opportunity to investors seeking to diversify their investment portfolios.
“The fund — AlAhli Ma’moun Fund for International Stock Trade ‘D’ — is fully compliant with Islamic principles and a new investment opportunity because it opens doors for investors seeking to diversify their investment portfolios and use investment revenues in large global corporations that enjoy a strong and stable growth,” Sami Abdo, investment services division head at the NCB, told a press conference at the Qasr Al-Sharq of Jeddah Hilton on Monday. In addition, the fund protects the investor’s capital.
“The fund protects the investor’s capital 100 percent of his investment value in addition to participating with capital profits (if available) by investing in Shariah-compliant international stocks,” he said. The minimum fee for participation in the fund is SR250,000 and there is no maximum limit, said Abdo, who was accompanied by Ayman Bajsair, head of product development, and Saeed Mohammed Albatati, manager, investment product development and researches, investment services division.
Abdo said the fund would invest in international corporations that have an excellent track record of achievements and successes built on sound foundations with a wide range of products and services and rich consumer segments.
“The fund aims to protect the investor’s capital whatever the market performance,” Abdo noted.
He added that the corporations that the fund selects to invest in will work toward increasing their growth over the two years, which is the life span of the fund. The investment would then become a cash flow for investors.
The NCB is the first bank to develop and launch investment fund service. Many of its investment funds have turned out to be the best performing ones in the world including Saudi Stock Trade Fund, which achieved an exceptional profit of 850 percent during the past six years and was rated as the best performing stock fund in June 2006 by Standard and Poor’s for investment fund services, the global leader in credit ratings and credit risk analysis.
