Islamic finance provider, Hejaz Financial Services, has launched what is claimed to be the country’s first ‘broad church’ faith and ethical dealer group, Hejaz Financial Advisers (HFA).
According to the firm, HFA will support financial advisers that have an existing Muslim client base as well as those that are based in highly populated Muslim areas who want to provide more effective financial counsel to their local people.
As a ‘broad church’ dealer group, HFA will also bring together advisers with clients from other religions and those that want to help clients invest their values and avoid greenwashing.
“Demand for sustainable, faith-based, and ethical financial products and services is growing. Australians want their investments to reflect their values, whether these are in line with religious principles or their moral compass, but are rightly wary of greenwashed products and promises,” said Hejaz Financial Services COO, Muzzammil Dhedhy.
“Financial advice needs to become ever more tailored to these customer demands and we believe there is an opportunity to connect advisers who want to serve this rapidly expanding client need.”
Hejaz explained that it has adopted a “quality-over-quantity” approach to its dealer group which has grown to a total of 10 advisers since 2020. The firm said that this approach will remain integral to HFA moving forward alongside an emphasis on collaboration and training.
It also noted that the more than 800,000 Muslims currently in Australia are increasingly demanding access to financial products that they have traditionally been excluded from.
“We’ve launched HFA because we believe there is an affinity between advisers that want to better serve a Muslim clientele, those who are serving clients of other religions and those who want to help non-religious clients access ultra-ethical products,” said Hejaz Financial Services head of marketing, Ali Ozyon.
“We strive to partner with advisers who are dedicated to walking in the shoes of their clients to foster strong, ongoing relationships through quality advice and empowerment. HFA is a broad church and you don’t need to be Muslim, or adhere to any other religion, to be part of this.”
Furthermore, the firm is aiming for HFA to become trusted as a brand that is abolishing unethical advice and will be running events and training programs to upskill advisers under its AFSL on how to generate and convert leads with ethically minded clients.
