On Wall Street, NCFA rolls out multifaith approach to Islamic finance

In the cut-throat world of Wall Street capitalism, where Hollywood’s fictional Gordon Gekko once declared, "greed, for lack of a better word, is good", a new ethos is taking root, championed by an unlikely figure: Hakeem J Webb, CEO of National Christian Financial Advisors (NCFA).

A markets veteran, Hakeem is not merely dabbling in Islamic finance; he's using decades of trading and investing experience to try and refashion the DNA of New York’s high finance – espousing a multifaith approach that seeks abundance over scarcity and ethical conduct over unbridled avarice.

As Hakeem shared with IFN Investor, his journey into the burgeoning North American Islamic finance and capital markets, making up a US$170 billion opportunity serving over seven million Muslims, is less about pivot than about evolution.

“Ethical finance is good” – not greed

“In Wall Street(the movie), Gordon Gekko declares that greed is good. The reality today is that ethical finance is good. Ethical economic finance is what will make America great and ethical economic finance is what will save free markets.”

Despite the Christian identity in its name, NCFA isn’t structurally new to Islamic investing. The firm's proprietary Ethico-Economics framework, a bedrock of its operations for over 30 years, has been aligned all along with the principles of Shariah compliance.

At the heart of the framework are seven core Islamic finance principles: value-based investing, ethical investments, risk sharing, interest-free financing, fair wealth distribution, sustainability and transparency.

NCFA's offerings – that span investment banking and M&A advisory, Halal wealth management, Islamic retirement planning and 401(k) alternatives as well as comprehensive treasury solutions – seamlessly integrate these aspects.

The basis for the framework, Hakeem notes, dates back "4,000 plus years", emphasizing moral and ethical bases rather than "avarice or greed".

"It's applying a ‘not-a-greed' mindset. In Western capitalism, we base things normally on scarcity. In an ethical economic finance system, it's based on abundance.”

Serving without monopolizing

The pursuit of abundance is deeply personal for Hakeem. Beyond his finance credentials, he possesses a unique interfaith background, having served for three decades as both an ordained religious leader and a financial adviser to diverse faith communities – including Judaism, Christianity and Islam. He has also completed the Higher Certificate in Islamic Economics, Banking and Finance and is pursuing a PhD in Islamic Studies.

His comprehensive understanding of faith-based financial principles helps NCFA bridge the service gap for North America’s underserved religious investing groups.

“When you realize that there's more than enough for everyone, you don't have to be in the marketplace thinking you have to dominate and monopolize every product and service to leave nothing for anyone. Because there's enough for everyone.”

While NCFA had successfully served “conventional clients" for over three decades, Hakeem saw a clear business imperative in expanding into Islamic finance. With that, the firm brought on to its board Dr Main Alqudah – resident Fatwa committee member of the Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America – to make its operations fully Shariah compliant.

"This certification enables us to bridge a critical market gap while honoring our commitment to ethical, value-based finance,” NCFA had earlier announced in a press release.

Focus on small, midsize firms; Wall Street democratization

Despite its wide offerings, NCFA said its key focus will be serving "micro-to-midsize businesses," a segment often overlooked by larger financial institutions. This fits into Hakeem’s vision of "democratizing Wall Street" by providing niche financial players access to institutional-quality Shariah services.

The firm’s ‘Cyborg-Advisors' platform is also expected to play a crucial role in delivering these services efficiently and accessibly to a broader, more diverse client base, Hakeem said.

Looking ahead, NCFA's ambitions extend beyond North America. Following the establishment of its market presence domestically, the firm plans a strategic expansion into key international Islamic finance markets, including the GCC, Indonesia and Malaysia – regions collectively representing over US$3 trillion in global Islamic finance assets, according to S&P Global.

And while the North American Islamic finance market is still developing, Hakeem and his team are prepared for potential regulatory, technological and market-based challenges.

“The problem with Islamic finance is not regulation. Islamic finance leads the world in regulation and is built on regulation. The problem with Islamic finance is having uniformity that every country is going to adhere to.”