Aviva has launched a “Shariah investment strategy” that includes a suite of funds compliant with Islamic principles.

The new lifestyle investment strategy will build on Aviva’s existing Shariah offering by providing its workplace pension members with a universal de-risking option and a target drawdown glide path.

Aviva said this would offer members greater options as they approach retirement.

Islamic investment principles will be built into the funds, while automated de-risking will ensure the appropriate amount of risk is taken throughout the pension journey, Aviva said.

The new range of funds has been created using HSBC asset management (HSBC AM) funds and is available for members to self-select.

Aviva workplace investment proposition manager, Umar Yaqoob, commented on the launch: “Historically across the market Shariah investors have broadly had to make their own investment choices and have relied on a single fund solution without access to de-risking.

"Solutions in the market are starting to evolve, but it’s important these go beyond just moving investments from a higher risk to a lower risk fund and consider the different ways people will access their pension.

“Our new Shariah lifestyle investment strategy brings together a suite of funds to create de-risking solutions that offer members the choice to have a hands-off approach from the point they join their pension scheme through to retirement or select a lifestyle strategy that aligns with how they want to access their pension savings at retirement.”

HSBC asset management global head of ETF and indexing sales, Olga de Tapia, added: “We are pleased to partner with Aviva to provide investors with a range of Shariah-compliant investment solutions, supporting them in their efforts to deliver a de-risking solution that offers members multiple retirement options.

"The launch of our Islamic investment range was driven by our ambition of providing faith-based investors with the same range of investment opportunities as conventional counterparts, and we are proud to reach an even larger pool of individuals, enabling them to invest in a way that is in line with their principles.”

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