IFR 7.5(3) and the draft Shari'ah Governance Rules: does a Fund that relies on Shari'ah screening keep its relief from appointing an SSB?

Under the current IFR, 7.5(3) releases the Fund Manager of a Non-Exempt Fund from appointing an SSB where it relies on a widely accepted Shari'ah screening process, while 7.3(1), 7.6(2) and 7.7(1) refer to "the Fund's SSB" without an exception. The draft in Consultation Paper AFSA-PSRD-CSP-2026-0003 deletes IFR 7.5 to 7.7 and places Shari'ah governance in new Shari'ah Governance Rules, which apply to "a Fund Manager of a Domestic Fund which is operated or held out as being operated as an Islamic Fund" (rule 1(1)(b)). After adoption the conflict inside IFR falls away with 7.5 to 7.7. Two questions remain: the new Rules contain no counterpart of the screening relief in 7.5(3), so it is unclear whether such Funds must now appoint an SSB; and IFR 7.3(1), which the draft does not amend, still requires approval by "the Fund's SSB".

Proposed correction

When finalising the draft, please state whether a Fund that relies on a widely accepted Shari'ah screening process keeps its relief from appointing an SSB under the new Shari'ah Governance Rules, and align IFR 7.3(1) with the answer (for example "where an SSB is appointed to the Fund").

Jurisdiction

Kazakhstan — AIFC

Act

AIFC Islamic Finance Rules (IFR)

Place

IFR 7.5(1)

Record

Question of reading or data

Class

Question of reading or data

Where it arose

The text of the act

Arxo's conclusion

Confirmed

Official text

Unchanged at last check

Last checked

2026-10-25

Evidence

Contradiction within the text. Quotations are verbatim from the official material; translations are ours and marked.

A Fund Manager of a Domestic Fund that is a Non-Exempt Fund must, subject to (3), appoint a SSB to its Fund that meets the following requirements:

A Fund Manager is not required to comply with the requirement (1) in where it relies, for the purposes of making Investments for the Fund, on a widely accepted Shari'ah screening process

if the Fund does not have a SSB appointed to it pursuant to Rule 7.5(3), what widely acceptable screening methodologies are used by the Fund

In the case of a Domestic Fund that is a Non-Exempt Fund, the Fund Manager must commission an interim and an annual report relating to the Fund operations from the SSB which complies with AAOIFI GSIFI No 1.

The Fund Manager of a Domestic Fund that is a Non-Exempt Fund must ensure that the relevant Fund’s Constitution and Prospectus are approved by the Fund’s SSB.

internal Shari’ah review to assess the extent to which the Fund complies with fatwas, rulings and guidelines issued by the Fund’s SSB.

Shari’ah reviews of the Fund, wherever applicable, are undertaken by the SSB

commission an interim and an annual report relating to the Fund operations from the

How to check it without Arxo's tools

1. Open ISLAMIC FINANCE RULES and find IFR 7.5(1); IFR 7.5(3); IFR 7.8(1)(c); IFR 7.6(2); IFR 7.3(1); IFR 7.7(1); IFR 7.6(1) — 'wherever applicable'. Compare the text with the quotation above. A copy is kept in this register: f5bf530f9d9d46ed-islamic-finance-rules-1.pdf (SHA-256 f5bf530f9d9d46edbfb3740d5937f3ca2ec853c0a15174b64d7e9d548a7baaed, copy of the official file).
2. The finding holds if the quoted passages read as shown and the comparison gives the result stated at the top of this page. If it does not, write to us with the record ID.

How this finding was made

AI agents read the official texts, turned the provisions concerned into executable rules and ran the comparison; they also drafted this record. A person at Arxo checked the finding and approved the report before it was sent (2026-10-27).

Responsible institutions

• Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) — author of the AIFC Rules

Reported to

Responses

No response recorded.

Documents and reproduction

• ISLAMIC FINANCE RULES

History

1. 2026-10-24Confirmed by Arxo
2. 2026-10-27Entered in the register
3. 2026-10-27Reported to Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) (e-mail)

Cite this record

Arxo Law, Arxo Findings Register, ARXO-2026-0117, https://arxo.io/findings/ARXO-2026-0117/ (status as of 2026-10-25). Data: ARXO-2026-0117.json.