Shariah-compliant mutual funds in Pakistan, made clearer.

A mutual fund pools money from many investors and is managed by an asset management company licensed by the SECP. Each investor owns units, priced daily at the fund’s NAV. Pakistan has both conventional and Shariah-compliant mutual funds, across money market, income, equity, asset allocation, fixed-term and voluntary pension (VPS) categories. Islamic Funds covers the Shariah-compliant ones.

More than 300 Shariah-compliant mutual funds and plans from over 20 asset management companies appear in MUFAP data, including Al Meezan, Faysal, NBP, Alfalah, MCB, Lucky, ABL, HBL, Atlas and UBL. The count includes fixed-term plans and pension sub-funds. The fund directory and the asset managers page list every one, with its latest NAV.

Islamic mutual funds pool money from many investors and invest it only in Shariah-compliant assets, such as screened stocks listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange, sukuk, Islamic bank deposits and other permissible instruments. They avoid interest (riba), excessive uncertainty (gharar) and businesses such as alcohol, gambling and conventional banking. Each fund has a Shariah advisor who approves its investments.

Conventional mutual funds can hold interest-bearing instruments, so many investors who want halal investments choose funds classified as Shariah-compliant. These funds are regulated by the SECP and supervised by a Shariah advisor. Islamic Funds lists only funds classified as Shariah-compliant in MUFAP data. Whether a particular fund meets your own standard is a personal decision, so read its offering document and consult a qualified scholar if you are unsure.

Both are managed by SECP-licensed asset management companies and priced daily by NAV. An Islamic fund may only invest in Shariah-compliant assets, is overseen by a Shariah advisor, and purifies any incidental non-compliant income, usually by giving it to charity. A conventional fund can invest in interest-based instruments such as T-bills and term finance certificates.

The main categories are Islamic money market funds (lowest risk, short-term instruments), Islamic income funds (sukuk and other fixed-income assets), Islamic equity and dedicated equity funds (Shariah-compliant stocks), asset allocation and balanced funds, fund of funds, fixed-return and capital-protected plans, commodity and gold funds, exchange-traded funds and Islamic voluntary pension schemes (VPS). You can filter the fund directory by any of these categories.

Net Asset Value (NAV) is the price of one unit of a mutual fund: the value of everything the fund owns, minus its liabilities, divided by the number of units. Pakistani funds announce NAV every business day. Islamic Funds shows the NAVs published by MUFAP (Mutual Funds Association of Pakistan), exactly as reported, with the date of each figure.

NAV history and payout (dividend) records come from MUFAP reports. We display them as published and clearly mark when a fund’s history or payout coverage is incomplete, rather than estimating missing numbers. Always confirm figures with the fund’s asset management company before investing.

Yes. The 5-year total return in the fund directory and the historical SIP and comparison tools include payouts. You can choose to reinvest them or keep them as cash. If verified payout data is missing for a period, the return is shown as unavailable instead of being understated.

You invest directly with the asset management company (online or at a branch) or through a bank or distributor. You usually need a CNIC, a bank account and a completed account-opening and risk-profile form. Overseas Pakistanis can typically invest through a Roshan Digital Account. Islamic Funds is an information site and does not sell funds or accept investments.

There is no single best fund. The right choice depends on your goal, time horizon and risk tolerance: money market funds suit short-term savings, income funds suit steady medium-term goals, and equity funds suit long horizons with higher volatility. See the best Islamic mutual funds page for each category’s top performers by 1-year return with payouts, review longer-term returns in the directory, then compare shortlisted funds side by side on the same dates. Islamic Funds provides information, not investment advice.