By Bernardo Vizcaino and Arpan Varghese Reuters Tuesday, February 14, 2017
The world's largest physically-backed gold fund said today it has been certified as sharia-compliant, the latest effort aimed at spurring demand for bullion from investors across majority-Muslim countries.
Gold had traditionally been classified as a currency in Islamic finance, confining its use to spot transactions, but new guidance issued in December is making room for a wider range of investment products.
The SPDR Gold Trust, an exchange-traded fund that holds 836.7 tonnes of bullion worth $33 billion, now falls in line with rules from the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions.
World Gold Trust Services, a subsidiary of the World Gold Council (WGC), said in a statement to Reuters that the ETF had received the certification from Malaysia-based Islamic advisory firm Amanie Advisors. ...
... For the remainder of the report:
http://www.reuters.com/article/islamic-financ...d-idUSL4N1G005C
