Halal investing in Switzerland — A programme compliant with Muslim ethics

Q: How do you know whether a share is halal?

A share is considered compliant after two screens. First a sector screen: the company's main activity must not fall within a prohibited field. Then financial ratios, according to the AAOIFI standards: interest-bearing debt measured against market capitalisation below 33 %, interest-bearing cash and investments below 33 %, and income from non-compliant activities below 5 % (to be purified). This screening must be reviewed periodically, because a company's situation changes.

Q: Is cryptocurrency halal?

The question cannot be settled in one block: it depends on the asset and on its use. A cryptocurrency used as a means of exchange or a store of value may be considered compliant by many contemporary scholars, whereas protocols founded on interest (staking akin to riba, interest-based lending platforms) are problematic. Each case is examined according to its real economic structure, not according to its label.

Q: What is riba and why is it prohibited?

Riba means interest or usury: any surplus obtained without real consideration in a loan or an exchange. It is prohibited in Islam because it generates a gain disconnected from real risk and real work. In practice, avoiding riba means excluding conventional bonds, interest-bearing accounts and companies whose model rests on lending at interest, in favour of investments backed by assets and by a real economic activity.

Q: Do you need a lot of money to invest in a halal way?

No. Compliant investing is not reserved for an elite: it is a matter of method, not of amount. What counts is the rigour of the screening and the discipline of the approach, which apply whatever the starting capital. The ALG Club programme aims precisely at making every member autonomous in their decisions, whatever their starting point.

Q: Is the ALG Club halal programme suited to Switzerland?

Yes — that is its very reason for being. Personal taxation, cantonal particularities, the Swiss franc and the platforms accessible from Switzerland: the whole framework is designed for Swiss residents wishing to invest in a compliant way. ALG Club was, moreover, founded by two Swiss Muslim brothers, who know this reality from the inside.

The principle

Investing halal means investing in the real economy.

A halal investment is an investment that complies with the principles of Muslim ethics. It excludes riba (interest), prohibited sectors and companies carrying too much debt, in favour of investments backed by a real economic activity. Compliance is not declared: it is verified, through a sector screen and then precise financial ratios.

That is exactly what most offerings leave out: saying “halal” is one thing, proving it with figures is another — and so is rooting it in the reality of an investor living in Switzerland. That is what ALG Club teaches.

What we see

Many want to invest halal. Few know where to start.

Between scattered information, contradictory opinions and offerings that promise compliance without ever demonstrating it, it is hard to move forward with any peace of mind. Three obstacles come up constantly.

The information is scattered and contradictory

A forum says one thing, a video says the opposite. Without a clear frame of reference, every decision becomes a source of doubt — and where religious compliance is concerned, doubt paralyses.

“Halal” is often asserted, rarely proven

Many offerings attach the word without setting out any method at all. Yet compliance rests on precise, verifiable criteria. Without those criteria, a promise binds only the person who believes it.

Nothing is designed for Switzerland

Almost all Islamic finance content addresses other markets. The Swiss franc, cantonal taxation, the platforms accessible from Switzerland: so many realities left aside.

The programme

A method, not a product.

Four pillars, one objective: to make you fully autonomous in the running of 100% compliant wealth. The programme is its core; the group sessions and the community extend it. ALG Club manages no fund and provides no personalised advice.

Pillar I · The foundation

A compliant method, taught step by step.

AAOIFI screening, recognising a compliant asset, the vocabulary of Islamic finance: the Système OMÉGA applied to compliant investing, taught as it is so that you understand it for yourself.

AAOIFI screening applied

Recognising a 100% compliant asset

Rooted in Swiss reality

Key vocabulary and concepts

The two founders of ALG Club in conversation

Pillar II · The circle

Direct access to the founders. As a group.

Live group question-and-answer sessions, a monthly market report reserved for members, a community and private events. The questions concern the method and compliance — so do the answers.

Live question-and-answer sessions

Monthly market report

Community and private events

A small circle of members

A handshake between an ALG Club founder and a member

Pillar III · The long horizon

Lasting wealth, not a one-off.

Compliance is not a fixed state: it is re-checked, and non-compliant income is purified over time. The programme teaches you to do that yourself, so that it lasts — not for a single cycle.

Reviewing the compliance of your positions

Re-reading compliance over time

A long-term view of wealth

Passing on compliant wealth

Pillar IV · The final objective

Understand, then decide on your own.

A structured programme, in video modules, to understand the principles: screening, compliance, purification. Full autonomy, not dependence.

The principles of AAOIFI screening

Recognising a compliant asset

Purifying non-compliant income

Dedicated resources and tools

Our compliance

Compliance is not declared. It is verified.

Here, precisely, is the method we apply — with no grey areas. We assert nothing we cannot explain.

< 33%

Debt

Interest-bearing debt, measured against the company's market capitalisation, must remain below one third.

< 33%

Interest-bearing cash

Cash and investments generating interest, measured against market capitalisation, must remain below one third.

< 5%

Non-compliant income

The share of income from non-compliant activities must remain marginal — and the corresponding portion is purified.

Sector screening firstProhibited activities are excluded: interest and conventional finance, alcohol, gambling, weapons, pornography, tobacco, among others.

Financial ratios nextThe AAOIFI thresholds above apply to the companies retained after the sector screen. The two screens are cumulative.

Exclusion of ribaConventional bonds, interest-bearing accounts and models founded on lending at interest are set aside as a matter of principle.

Purification of incomeWhere a minimal share of non-compliant income remains, the corresponding portion is identified so that it can be purified.

Periodic reviewCompliance is not acquired once and for all: a company's situation changes, and the screening is re-examined regularly.

Case-by-case examinationFor recent assets (including certain cryptocurrencies), the analysis looks at the real economic structure, not at the label.

Our references

Our method draws on the reference body of work of contemporary Islamic finance and on the standards of the AAOIFI (Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions), the most widely followed standard-setting body in the field. We refer to the work of recognised scholars such as Mufti Taqi Usmani and Sheikh Yusuf DeLorenzo, whose writings are authoritative on the screening and compliance of investments.

In the interest of transparency: ALG Club applies these standards and references rigorously and in a documented manner. We do not claim to have a formal sharia supervisory board validating every decision — we set out the method, the criteria and the sources, so that you can judge with full knowledge of the facts. That requirement of transparency is, in our eyes, the first mark of seriousness.

Frequently asked questions

Halal investing, clearly put.

What is a halal investment?+

A halal investment is an investment that complies with the principles of Muslim ethics. It excludes riba (interest), prohibited sectors (alcohol, gambling, weapons, pornography, etc.) and companies carrying too much debt or whose income comes mainly from non-compliant activities. Compliance is assessed through a sector screen and then financial ratios, according to recognised standards such as those of the AAOIFI.

How do you know whether a share is halal?+

A share is considered compliant after two screens. First a sector screen: the company's main activity must not fall within a prohibited field. Then financial ratios, according to the AAOIFI standards: interest-bearing debt measured against market capitalisation below 33 %, interest-bearing cash and investments below 33 %, and income from non-compliant activities below 5 % (to be purified). This screening must be reviewed periodically, because a company's situation changes.

Is cryptocurrency halal?+

The question cannot be settled in one block: it depends on the asset and on its use. A cryptocurrency used as a means of exchange or a store of value may be considered compliant by many contemporary scholars, whereas protocols founded on interest (staking akin to riba, interest-based lending platforms) are problematic. Each case is examined according to its real economic structure, not according to its label.

What is riba and why is it prohibited?+

Riba means interest or usury: any surplus obtained without real consideration in a loan or an exchange. It is prohibited in Islam because it generates a gain disconnected from real risk and real work. In practice, avoiding riba means excluding conventional bonds, interest-bearing accounts and companies whose model rests on lending at interest, in favour of investments backed by assets and by a real economic activity.

Do you need a lot of money to invest in a halal way?+

No. Compliant investing is not reserved for an elite: it is a matter of method, not of amount. What counts is the rigour of the screening and the discipline of the approach, which apply whatever the starting capital. The ALG Club programme aims precisely at making every member autonomous in their decisions, whatever their starting point.

Is the ALG Club halal programme suited to Switzerland?+

Yes — that is its very reason for being. Personal taxation, cantonal particularities, the Swiss franc and the platforms accessible from Switzerland: the whole framework is designed for Swiss residents wishing to invest in a compliant way. ALG Club was, moreover, founded by two Swiss Muslim brothers, who know this reality from the inside.

The scope of our activity

ALG Club Sàrl is a private financial training and education organisation. We provide no personalised investment advice within the meaning of the Financial Services Act (LSFin), we manage no assets on behalf of third parties and we distribute no financial, insurance or pension products. ALG Club is neither a financial intermediary nor an insurance intermediary. Our content, guides and tools are educational: every investment decision is the sole responsibility of the person who takes it, and all investment carries a risk of capital loss.

Investing halal in Switzerland,
without compromising on rigour.

Investing halal means investing in the real economy.

Many want to invest halal. Few know where to start.