Istiqlal Mosque Enters Stock Exchange

Jakarta, MINA – Economic and Religious Observer Buya Anwar Abbas has expressed appreciation for the Grand Imam of Istiqlal Mosque’s initiative to strengthen community economic activities through the Istiqlal Global Fund (IGF), which will be developed as a center for business activities and empowerment of Muslim entrepreneurs.

The institution will not only collect, distribute, and invest funds but also provide training to Muslim entrepreneurs, particularly for MSMEs.

“One of IGF’s groundbreaking moves that has attracted widespread attention is the policy made by its management to enter the stock exchange ecosystem. This does not mean that IGF will sell Istiqlal Mosque’s assets, but rather the management is trying to make productive use of cash waqf funds at Istiqlal by investing them in the stock exchange through purchasing sharia-compliant shares on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX),” Buya Anwar told Republika on Monday.

Buya Anwar said this represents remarkable courage, innovation, and a breakthrough. According to Istiqlal Mosque’s Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar, this policy has made Istiqlal Mosque the first mosque in Indonesia and possibly the world to enter the stock exchange.

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However, Buya Anwar cautioned that since share prices fluctuate while in the concept of cash waqf the principal value must be guaranteed or must not decrease, placing cash waqf funds in shares carries significant risk.

He questioned who would bear responsibility and compensate for the eroded principal value if losses occur. For prudence, he suggested that IGF should not invest cash waqf funds in shares but rather in state sukuk (Islamic bonds), where returns or income can be paid periodically by the issuer to investors, and the principal value of the investment can be returned by the sukuk issuer at the end of the investment maturity period.[]

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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