Built around your whole financial life: Shariah-screened investing, retirement planning, and business retirement plans for families and business owners.
Halal Investing & Halal 401(k) Plans in Orange County
Many Muslim investors have been told their only options are to avoid the market or settle for whatever their employer's plan offers. Neither has to be true.
Get a complimentary halal portfolio review
Serving clients throughout Orange County and Southern California.
Your complimentary halal portfolio review
- ✓A review of your current funds against published screening methodologies
- ✓Your 401(k) menu checked for a Shariah-screened option
- ✓No obligation to change anything
I work with individuals, families, and business owners who want Shariah-compliant investments. You shouldn't have to give up thoughtful tax planning strategies or a clear retirement strategy to get them. My role is to explain the options, the tradeoffs, and how each piece fits together, so you can decide with confidence.
I'm not a religious scholar, and I don't issue rulings on what is permissible. Many clients review their approach with their own imam or scholar, and I'm glad to support that conversation.
Screening
How Shariah screening works
Shariah-compliant investing generally applies two kinds of screens before a company can be held.
Start with the broad market
A full universe of publicly traded companies.
Business activity screen
Removes companies whose core business involves conventional banking and lending, alcohol, gambling, tobacco, pork products, or certain entertainment.
Financial ratio screen
Removes companies with too much interest-bearing debt or too much cash in interest-bearing securities. It also removes companies that earn more than a small share of revenue from impermissible sources.
Eligible holdings and purification
What remains can be held. Where a small amount of impermissible income remains, many investors donate that portion of dividends to charity.
Bar lengths are illustrative. Screening standards vary by provider and scholarly board, so part of our work is understanding which standard matters to you.
Wondering how your current investments compare? Get a complimentary halal portfolio review →
Your options
Halal investment options we can discuss
There is no single "halal portfolio." The right mix depends on your goals, your tax situation, and the screening standard you follow.
Shariah-screened mutual funds and ETFs
Professionally managed funds that apply Shariah screening to stocks in the U.S. and abroad. They offer broad diversification at a relatively low cost and are a common starting point.
Sukuk and income alternatives
Conventional bonds and CDs pay interest, which many investors avoid. Sukuk are asset-backed certificates structured to share in income from underlying assets rather than pay interest. They can play a role similar to bonds, though they carry their own risks.
Direct indexing with Shariah screens
For larger portfolios, you can own the individual stocks of an index directly and exclude companies that don't meet your standard. It also allows tax-loss harvesting. Declining holdings can be sold to realize losses and replaced with similar compliant holdings, so you stay invested. Losses can offset capital gains elsewhere, and unused losses can carry forward.
Retirement accounts and rollovers
IRAs and rollovers from former employer plans can use Shariah-screened options. That way your retirement savings follow the same principles as the rest of your portfolio.
Banking
Through Wells Fargo, we can also discuss non-interest-bearing deposit accounts for clients who prefer to avoid earning interest on cash.
Not sure which options fit you? Get a complimentary halal portfolio review →
For business owners
Halal 401(k) for business owners
If you own a business, your company's 401(k) may not offer a single Shariah-compliant investment option. That affects you and every employee who shares your values. As a Qualified Plan Financial Consultant (QPFC), I work with owners of established plans to:
- ✓Review the current plan and its investment menu
- ✓Add Shariah-compliant funds to the menu, where the plan's provider supports them
- ✓Evaluate a self-directed brokerage window so employees can choose compliant funds themselves
- ✓Keep fiduciary responsibilities clear as the plan changes
Retirement
Retirement income and distribution planning
By retirement, many people hold money in several types of accounts: taxable brokerage accounts, traditional IRAs and 401(k)s, and Roth accounts. Each is taxed differently when you take money out.
We decide which accounts to draw from, and in what order, to help manage your taxes over retirement. Your screening preferences carry through every account.
Want your options reviewed? Get a complimentary halal portfolio review →
About
Sammy Khalil, QPFC
Financial Advisor · Wells Fargo Advisors
I've built my practice around a simple idea: most financial decisions aren't really about products. They're about tradeoffs people haven't had the chance to talk through with anyone.
Before becoming an advisor, I spent years working closely with business owners at the companies I worked for. That experience is what led me to this work, and it still shapes how I plan.
I work with individuals, families, and business owners across Orange County.
Verify my registration on FINRA BrokerCheck.
What happens next
Send the form
It takes under a minute. Only your name and phone are required.
I call at the time you picked
A short conversation to learn what you're looking for.
We review your options together
You see which Shariah-screened options are available to you, with no obligation.
Start here
Get a complimentary halal portfolio review
I'll review your current investments and your 401(k) menu. Then I'll show which Shariah-screened options are available to you, using published screening methodologies. Leave your name and number to get started.
What you get
- ✓A review of your current funds against published Shariah screening methodologies
- ✓Whether your 401(k) menu offers a Shariah-screened option, or could add one
- ✓Screened options that fit your goals, from funds to direct indexing
By submitting this request, you agree that the information you provide may be used by one of our associates from Wells Fargo Advisors to contact you about Wells Fargo Advisors' investment products and services. In addition, if you have other Wells Fargo products or services, you agree that Wells Fargo Advisors may share this information with those other Wells Fargo businesses or entities. Please review our privacy policy.
Questions about halal investing in Orange County
Tap a question to see the answer.
Is my 401(k) halal?
The account itself is just a tax wrapper. What matters is what it's invested in. If your plan doesn't offer a compliant option, you may still have choices. You could ask your employer to add one, or roll over balances from former employers.
How do I add halal funds to my company 401(k)?
The plan sponsor can add a Shariah-compliant fund to the investment menu. Or it can offer a self-directed brokerage window, so employees can choose compliant funds themselves. If you own the business, I can help you evaluate both options. If you're an employee, I can help you prepare a request to your HR team or plan committee.
What should I do about interest I've already earned?
Many investors donate interest income to charity as a form of purification. I can help you identify that income in your accounts so you can handle it according to your own guidance.
Do I have to give up returns to invest this way?
Screened portfolios hold fewer companies and can perform differently from the broad market, sometimes better and sometimes worse. We'll walk through the tradeoffs so you know what to expect.
Who decides what counts as compliant?
Funds and indexes follow published screening standards overseen by Shariah advisory boards. Standards differ, and you may want your own scholar's view. I can share each strategy's methodology so you can review it.
Related services
Invest in line with your values.
Let's talk through your options, from your own portfolio to your company's retirement plan.
Serving clients throughout Orange County
See every Orange County city I serve
- Aliso Viejo
- Anaheim
- Brea
- Buena Park
- Costa Mesa
- Cypress
- Dana Point
- Fountain Valley
- Fullerton
- Garden Grove
- Huntington Beach
- Irvine
- La Habra
- La Palma
- Laguna Beach
- Laguna Hills
- Laguna Niguel
- Laguna Woods
- Lake Forest
- Los Alamitos
- Mission Viejo
- Newport Beach
- Orange
- Placentia
- Rancho Santa Margarita
- San Clemente
- San Juan Capistrano
- Santa Ana
- Seal Beach
- Stanton
- Tustin
- Villa Park
- Westminster
- Yorba Linda
Plus unincorporated communities including Coto de Caza, Ladera Ranch, Midway City, Rossmoor, and Trabuco Canyon.
Important information
This information is for general educational purposes only. It is not a recommendation or individualized investment, tax, or legal advice.
Wells Fargo Advisors does not provide religious guidance or certify investments as Shariah-compliant. Screening standards vary by provider.
Screened strategies limit the investment universe and may perform differently than strategies without such restrictions.
Sukuk are subject to credit, liquidity, interest rate, and issuer risks, and are not equivalent to FDIC-insured deposits.
Tax-loss harvesting may not be appropriate for all investors, is subject to wash sale rules, and may lower cost basis, increasing taxes when holdings are sold later. Harvesting applies only to taxable accounts.
Direct indexing involves minimums and costs, and may track its index differently than a fund.
Wells Fargo and Company and its Affiliates do not provide tax or legal advice. This communication cannot be relied upon to avoid tax penalties. Please consult your tax and legal advisors to determine how this information may apply to your own situation. Whether any planned tax result is realized by you depends on the specific facts of your own situation at the time your tax return is filed.
Before deciding whether to retain assets in an employer-sponsored plan or roll over to an IRA, an investor should consider various factors including, but not limited to: investment options, fees and expenses, services, withdrawal penalties, protection from creditors and legal judgments, required minimum distributions and possession of employer stock.
Deposit products are offered by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Member FDIC.
Initial reviews and consultations are offered at no cost and with no obligation. If you decide to open an account or use advisory services, applicable fees and expenses will be explained to you in advance.
The Qualified Plan Financial Consultant (QPFC) credential is awarded by the National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) and requires passing a proctored exam, agreeing to NAPA's Code of Professional Conduct, and completing annual continuing education. Holding the QPFC does not by itself make an advisor a fiduciary to a retirement plan. Whether Wells Fargo Advisors serves a plan in a fiduciary capacity depends on the services and agreement selected.
Links to third-party websites are provided for your convenience. Wells Fargo Advisors is not responsible for the content of those websites.