Standard Chartered Unveils CIO Islamic Funds in UAE

Encouraged by the strong demand for its Signature CIO Funds and building on strong client demand, the Standard Chartered Bank has announced the launch of Standard Chartered CIO Islamic Funds in the UAE and Nigeria.

The Standard Chartered CIO Islamic Funds are UAE-domiciled Shariah-compliant investment products, marking a milestone in its global wealth management offering and underscoring the country’s growing role as a powerhouse in Islamic finance.

Comprising the Signature CIO Islamic Growth Fund and the Signature CIO Islamic Income Fund, they aim to provide investors with diversified access to global Islamic equities, sukuk, gold, and cash allocations. Plans are underway to expand the range to four funds in the near future to cater to growing regional and international demand.

The Islamic funds will be managed by Aditum Investment Management Limited (fund manager) and advised by Standard Chartered with regards to asset allocation, and a quantitative manager for global Islamic equities.

Aditum Investment Management Limited will also manage the Sukuk allocation. This structure allows clients to benefit from the combined expertise of leading global investment specialists, each with an established track record in their respective fields.

Rola Abu Manneh, CEO for the UAE, Middle East and Pakistan at Standard Chartered, said that the initiative aligns with the UAE’s strategic ambitions to become a global leader in ethical and Shariah-compliant finance.

Signature CIO Funds

The bank has also raised over $3 billion in its Signature CIO Funds AUM within three years, underscoring the Bank’s expertise in product innovation and personalised wealth advisory for its clients.

Launched in 2022, the Signature CIO Funds are designed to provide investors access to the Bank’s Chief Investment Office (CIO) strategies through a range of globally diversified multi-asset funds and ETFs portfolio, which includes global equities, global bonds, commodities, liquid alternatives, and cash.

Now available to the Bank’s Wealth and Retail Banking clients across 12 markets globally, the Signature CIO Funds democratise the Bank’s discretionary portfolio management offering, traditionally only available to high-net-worth private banking clients.

The suite of four Funds (Conservative, Income, Balanced, and Growth), with Amundi Asset Management acting as Investment Manager, has seen global reach and appeal among clients looking for multi-asset solutions with professional oversight to grow, manage and protect their wealth. The Funds are seeing between an average of 5.6% to 15.7% CAGR since inception.

Clients from various markets, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Nigeria, have indicated their satisfaction with the Funds in helping them stay invested and see steady income growth even in volatile market conditions, allowing them to meet their various wealth needs.

The Funds have also been successful in attracting a younger audience, with the Bank observing an increase in its number of clients between 30 to 45 years old, Standard Chartered said in a statement on Monday.

Samir Subberwal, Global Head, Wealth Solutions, Deposits and Mortgages, and Chief Client Officer, at Standard Chartered, said that as a leading international wealth manager, they continue to innovate and build on their suite of comprehensive products for clients, leveraging the bank’s open architecture framework.

According to him, Standard Chartered has seen strong demand for the Signature CIO Funds across its markets, testifying to their expertise in providing the clients with personalised advisory to help them capture market opportunities, leveraging our CIO insights underpinned by decades of market research experience.