The Senior Shariah Advisory Board and the scholars whose fiqh judgment governs every opinion issued by Al-Ershaad.
A standing body of nine resident scholars, chaired by a former member of the AAOIFI Shariah Board, supported by a chartered financial analyst bench — convened for the sole purpose of translating the higher objectives of Shariah into board-ready decisions for institutional principals.
Mufti Dr. Yusuf Al-Karim
Chair, Senior Shariah Advisory Board · Doctor of Fiqh al-Muamalat (IIUM, 2003)
Dr. Al-Karim served on the AAOIFI Shariah Board from 2014 to 2021 and is the principal author of four fiqh standards adopted by the Bahrain Shari'a Review Bureau and the Malaysian Securities Commission, governing the structuring of Ijarah Muntahia bi al-Tamlik, Musharakah Mutanaqisah, and the treatment of capital-provision undertakings in modern sukuk.
- AAOIFI Shariah Board
- Member, 2014 – 2021; authored Shariah Standard Nos. 17, 22, 28, and the 2019 revision of No. 15.
- Adopted Standards
- Four fiqh standards adopted by the Bahrain Shari'a Review Bureau and Bank Negara Malaysia's Shariah Advisory Council.
- Academic Affiliation
- Visiting Professor of Fiqh al-Muamalat, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), 2017 – present.
- Publications
- Six monographs and thirty-one peer-reviewed papers in the Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research.
- Languages of Issuance
- Arabic (native), English (working), Malay (working).
"A fatwa in modern finance is not a juristic exercise alone. It is a chain of reasoning that must survive the auditor's reading, the regulator's cross-examination, and the institution's own board. We do not issue opinions — we issue defensible chains of reasoning. Every ijtihad we record is challenged by a second scholar on the bench before it is signed."
— Mufti Dr. Yusuf Al-Karim, on the Board's deliberative methodology
The Board's methodology follows a five-stage deliberation: (i) tabulation of the contemporary commercial practice against classical fiqh al-muamalat texts; (ii) identification of the operative contract and its ancillary undertakings; (iii) cross-reading by a second scholar who was not party to the first drafting; (iv) issuance of a draft fatwa in Arabic with simultaneous English rendering by the in-house drafting desk; and (v) re-examination against the AAOIFI standard in force at the date of opinion. The average turnaround across the bench is six business days from formal instruction.
The bench that signs every opinion.
Four senior resident scholars, drawn from across the Sunni and Ja'fari fiqh traditions, deliver the firm's fatwas and structural opinions. Each is named here with the verifiable scope of authority they hold.
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01
Sheikh Dr. Abdullah Al-Mansouri
Senior Resident Scholar · Specialisation: Sukuk Structuring & Capital Markets
Doctor of Fiqh, Al-Azhar University (1998). Twenty-two years' experience in sovereign and corporate sukuk, including lead Shariah review on the Kingdom of Bahrain's 2021 dual-tranche issuance. Sits on the AAOIFI Working Group for Shariah Standard No. 17 (Sovereign Sukuk).
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02
Mufti Dr. Aisha Rahman
Senior Resident Scholar · Specialisation: Family Office, Wealth Structuring & Zakat
Doctor of Islamic Jurisprudence, International Islamic University Malaysia (2009). Former Shariah counsel at a Kuala Lumpur-based sovereign wealth fund. Leads the firm's family office practice across the GCC and Southeast Asia, with particular authority on cross-border estate planning and zakat computation.
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03
Sheikh Dr. Hassan Khoury
Senior Resident Scholar · Specialisation: Ijarah, IMBT & Real Estate Finance
Doctor of Comparative Fiqh, University of al-Qarawiyyin (2005). Co-author of the firm's proprietary 312-point Shariah Screening & Structuring Framework used by three of the top ten GCC Islamic banks. Particular expertise in forward Ijarah and IMBT structures for aviation and real estate.
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04
Dr. Imran Hussain
Senior Resident Scholar · Specialisation: Takaful, Retakaful & Insurance Reinsurance
Doctor of Fiqh al-Muamalat, University of Karachi (2012). Former external Shariah reviewer for the Bahrain Shari'a Review Bureau. Drafted the firm's internal Tabarru' / Waqf-based takaful model adopted by two MENA retakaful operators in 2023.
Five further resident scholars — covering Ja'fari fiqh, treasury & interbank products, fintech & digital assets, corporate governance, and ESG screening — are listed in the firm's confidential Scholars Register, released under NDA to instructing parties on request.
The Board's verifiable academic and standard-setting footprint.
Bring a structuring, certification, or second-opinion question directly to the Board.
A confidential 45-minute consultation with a Senior Shariah Advisor, scheduled at your discretion. Each session is held under the firm's standing non-disclosure terms and may be escalated to the full Advisory Board at the advisor's discretion.
Schedule a Confidential ConsultationDirect line for senior principals: +971 4 555 9082 · [email protected]