StashAway is a conventional robo advisor with a certified halal corner, and that one sentence contains both the reason to use it and the thing you must never forget about it. The Shariah Global Portfolio is reviewed and endorsed by Masryef Advisory, an independent Shariah adviser registered with the Securities Commission Malaysia, at the best fee schedule in the Malaysian robo category. But the endorsement covers the Shariah portfolios specifically, not the platform. This guide explains the product, the fees, the compliance mechanics and the discipline it requires, with every figure from StashAway's Malaysian pages crawled on August 6, 2026.
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The product in one view
StashAway Malaysia Sdn Bhd holds SC licence eCMSL/A0352/2018. Its Shariah Global Portfolio invests through Islamic-screened equity ETFs across US, developed ex-US and emerging markets, global sukuk for the fixed income sleeve, and physical gold as the safe-haven allocation, across four risk levels from moderate to very aggressive. There is no minimum investment, deposits can be one-time or recurring, and the platform reoptimises portfolios automatically under its ERAA framework (product and pricing pages, crawled August 6, 2026).
The endorsement that makes it halal
The product page states the portfolios are reviewed and endorsed Shariah-compliant by Masryef Advisory, an independent Shariah adviser registered with the Securities Commission Malaysia, with ongoing compliance reviews. This is exactly the named-adviser disclosure our verification guide tells you to look for, and it is printed where it should be: on the product page itself, not buried in a PDF. The screening excludes riba-based businesses, gambling, haram sectors and high-debt companies; sukuk replaces conventional bonds; gold is held physically rather than through derivatives. For a global portfolio, this is a clean architecture.
Fees: the category leader
StashAway's management fee runs from 0.8% down to 0.2% per annum as balances grow, with underlying ETF expenses around 0.2% on top. There is no sales charge and no minimum investment; the one small-account niggle is a RM5 minimum monthly fee that can bite dormant small balances, so tiny accounts should either be funded regularly or consolidated. Against Wahed's 0.79% flat (to RM499,999), StashAway is cheaper at most balances, and against unit trusts at 1.50% plus sales charges it is not close. Only self-directed Eq8 ETFs at 0.40% with brokerage costs compete on price, and they cover Malaysian and US slices rather than a managed global allocation.
What global diversification buys you, and costs you
The Shariah Global Portfolio's real differentiator is reach: screened US, developed and emerging market equities plus global sukuk, which no Malaysian unit trust or local ETF combination replicates this cheaply. The cost of that reach is currency: the portfolios are USD-heavy, so your ringgit returns carry the exchange rate as well as the markets. Over long horizons currency effects cut both ways, but investors measuring wealth in ringgit for ringgit goals should understand that a strong ringgit year can mute even a good market year. That is not a defect; it is what owning the world costs a Malaysian saver.
The discipline requirement
The structural point deserves repetition, because it is the entire risk of using StashAway as a halal investor: the platform is conventional by default. Cash management products, general investing portfolios and thematic options sit in the same app, unendorsed. Compliance is portfolio-level, so you must select the Shariah Global Portfolio explicitly at creation and stay inside it. Nothing in the app forces this discipline; it is yours to keep. Households where more than one person operates the account should make the rule explicit. If that standing risk is unacceptable, Wahed's halal-native design removes it for a somewhat higher fee at most balances.
Setting it up properly
Open the account, and at portfolio creation choose the Shariah Global Portfolio explicitly; the choice happens there, not in settings afterwards. Pick a risk level by horizon: the aggressive end for decade-plus goals, the moderate end as the goal approaches. Set a recurring deposit, because the platform's value is automation and the recurring transfer is what makes the plan real. Then leave it alone: the ERAA framework handles reoptimisation, and the worst results in robo investing come from users overriding the machine at market bottoms. Review once a year, at zakat time, which our zakat on investments guide makes practical.
How it compares with the other routes
Against Wahed: StashAway is cheaper at most balances and prints its adviser's name where Wahed's Malaysian pages do not, but Wahed's halal-native design removes the discipline requirement entirely; that trade is the whole choice, and our comparison article settles it profile by profile. Against unit trusts: the fee gap is not close (0.2% to 0.8% versus 1.50% plus sales charges of 5.0% or more), and what the unit trust buys back is an agent and active management, covered in our unit trust comparison. Against self-directed ETFs: Eq8's 0.40% funds are cheaper still, but they cover Malaysian and US index slices, need a brokerage account and leave allocation, rebalancing and order mechanics to you. StashAway's claim is a managed, endorsed, globally diversified halal portfolio for less than half the cost of the traditional managed route, and on the published numbers that claim stands up.
Where it fits in a Malaysian halal plan
StashAway Shariah is an open-market growth layer, best stacked on the statutory foundations: EPF Simpanan Shariah for the mandatory core, an Islamic savings account for emergency cash, PRS Shariah if tax relief pays you to lock money up. Its global tilt makes it a natural complement to Malaysian-heavy holdings: someone whose EPF, property and ASB-alternative savings are all domestic gets genuine diversification from the global sleeve. For the beginner starting from zero, the no-minimum entry plus recurring deposits make it one of the two realistic RM100-a-month routes, as our beginner guide lays out.
Frequently asked questions
Is StashAway halal?
The Shariah Global Portfolios are endorsed Shariah-compliant by Masryef Advisory, an SC-registered adviser, per the product page crawled August 6, 2026. The platform as a whole is conventional; only the Shariah portfolios carry the endorsement, so compliance depends on staying inside them.
Who is Masryef Advisory?
An independent Shariah advisory firm registered with the Securities Commission Malaysia, named on StashAway's Shariah portfolio page with IFN Awards 2024 recognition also printed there. Named, SC-registered oversight printed on the product page is the disclosure standard we look for.
What is the minimum investment?
None. You can start with any amount and add one-time or recurring deposits. Note the RM5 minimum monthly fee, which matters for very small dormant accounts; a funded, growing account outruns it quickly.
StashAway Shariah or Wahed?
StashAway wins on fees at most balances and on named local adviser disclosure; Wahed wins on platform-level compliance, since nothing non-halal exists on it. Our full comparison works through both by profile.
Compare providers in your state
See side-by-side comparisons of Shariah-compliant products, or let our matcher recommend the best options for your situation.
Do I pay zakat on a StashAway portfolio?
Yes, investment balances count toward zakatable wealth once you cross nisab at your haul date: 2.5% under the standard reckoning, calculated per your state authority's method. The app balance on your haul date is the practical starting figure.