Halal investing presents a number of challenges, especially in New Zealand.

Can you be a good Muslim, and also have serious financial goals you want to hit? That’s the challenge Muhammad Lambat is tackling. 

And, he says, the answer is yes. 

As the founder and content creator behind @MuslimInvesting, he’s built a growing platform dedicated to breaking down halal investing; investing that aligns with Islamic finance principles. 

He has a Masters of Applied Finance, and has worked as an equity analyst, but even with a solid financial background he found applying those skills in a way that aligned with his faith quickly became complicated. 

Money can be difficult enough for the average person, but add in the need to respect religious principles, and it gets even harder to know what’s the right move to make. 

What’s ethical, fits those personal and religious values, but also lets you hit those all-important financial goals? 

As he researched, he began posting his work online to help others struggling with the same issue. 

His 125,000 Instagram followers now rely on him to help them figure it out, because as he explains, it’s an area where many struggle to even get started.

“I find that a lot of people think they can’t be a good Muslim and be wealthy,” he says. 

“There’s this misconception that money is the root of all evil, or that investing is somehow off-limits. But the reality is that many people just don’t know how to navigate the finance world while sticking to their faith.”

What makes investing different for Muslims?

On the Making Cents podcast, Lambat breaks down the halal investing difference into a few key principles:

• No interest (riba). “This is a big one,” he says. “Islamic finance doesn’t allow paying or receiving interest, because it’s seen as an unfair exchange where one side benefits at the expense of another.”
• Avoiding excessive risk and uncertainty (gharar). “Highly speculative investments, like gambling or extremely volatile stocks, aren’t allowed.”
• Profit and loss sharing. “Instead of one party taking on all the risk, investments should be structured so both parties share in the profits and losses fairly.”
• Ethical investing. “We avoid ‘sin industries’ like alcohol, tobacco, gambling, and weapons. It’s not just about making money. It’s about doing it in a way that benefits the community.”

Essentially, it comes down to achieving financial goals in a way that doesn’t unfairly advantage one side over the other. 

The specific problem of investing as a Muslim in New Zealand

One big roadblock for those who are based in New Zealand is the limited availability of halal financial products.

Take homeownership, for example. That issue with using interest-based products? It makes a mortgage fairly tricky.

“In a place like New Zealand, we basically have close to zero Islamic mortgage options,” Lambat says. “That makes it really difficult for Muslims who want to buy a home while staying within their faith.”

Islamic mortgages do exist, but they work differently from conventional loans. 

Instead of charging interest, the bank buys the property alongside the buyer, and the buyer gradually purchases the bank’s share over time, while also paying rent on the portion they don’t yet own.

There are a small number of options in New Zealand, but they’re more common in other countries, and can be difficult to access here.  

“They’re often stuck choosing between renting forever or taking on a conventional mortgage that conflicts with their beliefs,” Lambat explains.

Another challenge? Finding halal investment options.

Since most large companies deal with some form of interest as part of their business, it’s difficult to find stocks that fully comply with Islamic finance principles. 

To make it easier, many Muslim investors rely on halal stock screening tools, which filter companies based on their business activities and financial ratios.

“We also have halal ETFs (exchange-traded funds),” Lambat says. 

“For example, there’s a version of the S&P 500 that removes non-compliant companies, so you still get the benefits of a broad market investment, but in a halal way.”

Misconceptions and backlash

Talking about money, especially faith-based money decisions, has led to Lambat facing some pushback online. 

He’s used to people challenging him on the specifics of Islamic finance. Some question whether certain investments are truly halal, while others accuse him of making up the rules.

“Even when I’m just explaining how something works – like Islamic mortgages – I get comments saying, ‘Did you come up with this yourself? This doesn’t make sense,’” he says. 

“People think I’m creating the rules when I’m just breaking them down in a way that’s easy to understand.”

Even within the Muslim community, there’s disagreement. 

While core principles like avoiding interest and excessive risk are widely accepted, the details get murky. Some scholars allow a company to earn up to 5% of its revenue from non-halal sources, recognising that avoiding it completely is nearly impossible in today’s economy. 

But others argue even that is too lenient, leading to heated debates.

Then, of course, there are pure and simple internet trolls – people who aren’t part of the Muslim community but take issue with anything labeled “Islamic.” 

Lambat deals with it by deliberately focusing on ways to keep the conversation constructive.

“If someone genuinely doesn’t understand, I’ll engage and try to explain it,” he says. “But if it’s just negativity for the sake of negativity, I don’t waste my energy.”

The irony is that the controversies often boost his reach.

His TikTok videos about Islamic mortgages, a subject he’s found to be one of the most contentious in Muslim finance, have racked up millions of views. The more people argue in the comments, the more the algorithm pushes his content. 

“It’s great for engagement,” he admits with a laugh.

At the end of the day, Lambat’s approach is simple: provide information, encourage discussion, and let people make their own choices. 

“No one is forced to invest this way,” he says. “I just want people to know their options.”

Strengths of halal investing

Despite the challenges, Lambat sees big benefits to investing in a way that aligns with his values.

“The companies we invest in tend to have lower debt and stronger fundamentals, because we screen out businesses that rely heavily on interest,” he says.

In fact, there’s research to suggest that halal-compliant investments can perform better during economic downturns, because they’re less leveraged and more financially stable.

“Islamic finance encourages wealth-building in a way that benefits the broader community,” he explains. 

“A big part of our system is zakat, where Muslims donate 2.5% of their net savings each year to support those in need.”

With Ramadan currently underway, many Muslims are now making those donations, so he’s once again online helping people understand the best ways to combine their donations with their overall financial goals.

For Lambat, halal investing isn’t just about following rules – it’s about encouraging people to build wealth in a way that aligns with their beliefs.

“It’s not about choosing between being religious or being wealthy. 

“It’s about learning how to do both, and understanding that financial security actually gives you more freedom to live according to your values.”

“The more people know, the more they can ask for change. And the more they ask for it, the more the financial world will have to adapt.”

Listen to the full conversation on the Making Cents podcast, available everywhere including Apple podcasts, Spotify and YouTube.