The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday, 29 October, launched a dedicated Shariah-compliant trading counter so retail and institutional investors can buy and sell Shariah-compliant PSX stocks and related Islamic securities under rules approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), the capital-market regulator.
The move followed SECP approval of the Shariah Trading Counter Regulations. The exchange says the counter gives investors an end-to-end setting for Islamic investing, with system-based controls meant to keep activity within Shariah rules.
How the new counter works
Trading on the counter is limited to Shariah-compliant equities, government Ijarah Sukuk (Islamic certificates linked to lease-style contracts) and corporate Sukuk. Securities that do not meet those standards cannot be traded there.
Interest-based leverage products, including the Margin Trading System (MTS), are blocked. Short selling and derivatives trading are also not allowed. In place of conventional share financing, investors can use Murabaha Share Financing (MSF), a cost-plus Islamic financing structure. Holders who still have non-compliant shares may sell them to bring portfolios in line with Islamic investment principles.
PSX has added a Shariah Portal on its Data Portal that lists every stock and Sukuk eligible for Islamic investment. Investors can open regular trading accounts or Sahulat Accounts using a Shariah-compliant customer relationship and risk disclosure document.
Brokers, ceremony and market context
Thirty-nine brokerage firms have joined through their Islamic windows, while two brokerage houses are licensed to operate only as Shariah-compliant brokers. The launch in Karachi included a gong ceremony attended by representatives of the SECP, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the Central Depository Company (CDC), the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited (NCCPL) and the Pakistan Stock Brokers Association (PSBA), along with Shariah scholars and participating brokers.
PSX Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Farrukh H. Sabzwari said a dedicated trading environment with system-based compliance controls would enhance investor confidence, improve access to Islamic investment opportunities and strengthen the country’s Islamic capital market. He said investor accounts at the exchange had crossed 650,000, with millennials and Generation Z driving much of the new participation, and that the platform was expected to draw more investors from Pakistan’s predominantly Muslim population.
SECP Commissioner Imtiaz Haider said a significant share of listed equity securities and mutual fund assets was already Shariah-compliant. He added that the initiative could broaden market participation, create opportunities for investors and brokers, and reinforce confidence in Islamic investment options.
What regulators plan next
Dr Tariq Naseem, head of Islamic finance at the SECP, pointed to further steps: expanding digital retail Sukuk, introducing Shariah-compliant tools for liquidity and risk management, and strengthening the legal framework for Islamic financial services. Together with the new counter for Shariah-compliant PSX stocks, those plans point to a wider push to make Islamic investing easier to find and use on the exchange.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Pakistan Stock Exchange ne Islamic usoolon ke mutabiq shares aur Sukuk ke liye alag trading counter shuru kar diya hai. Ab aap eligible Shariah-compliant PSX stocks ko is counter par kharid-farokht kar sakte hain, jabke interest wali financing aur short selling yahan nahi chalegi. Eligible list PSX ke Shariah Portal par dekhi ja sakti hai. Jo log halal investment chahte hain, un ke liye market tak pahunch asaan hone ka irada hai.
