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This study aims to analyse the current performance of unit trust funds between conventional and Islamic funds using data envelopment analysis because most Malaysians are incapable to distinguish between conventional and Islamic unit trust funds performances since they tend to assume both funds perform similarly. This paper uses 20 authorised funds by the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) for three years by using trailing data that consists of volatility element as input and total return as output. Indeed, the funds selected do not mix asset classes of funds, instead relying solely on equity funds to create a fair and reasonable ranking. The study employs Data Envelopment Analysis by testing two different models, namely Charnes, Cooper, and Rhodes input oriented (CCR-I) model and Banker, Charnes, and Cooper input oriented (BCC-I) model. The use of two models in this study is to ensure that the results of the ranking analysis are more accurate and precise. Both models employ the input-oriented model function as a means of maximising efficiency in order to increase the number of fairies. The efficiency of Islamic funds is more consistent than that of conventional funds for both models, as several Islamic funds maintain their position at the top of the efficient rank. However, there is a significant increase in conventional funds because 80% of the selected conventional funds that are not efficient in the CCR-I model achieve the efficiency level in the BCC-I model. As a result, there are four unit trust funds that are consistent in occupying efficiency level when tested for both CCR-I model and BCC-I model whereby three out of four are Islamic funds while the other is conventional fund. The Islamic funds consist of Apex Dana Aslah, BIMB i Growth Fund, and Maybank Malaysia Growth-I Fund while KAF Tactical Fund is conventional fund. Ultimately, it is concluded that Islamic funds perform better than conventional funds in Malaysia for the 3 years period ending 31 March 2021.

Relationship marketing has been recognised as an excellent way to build an exclusive long-term relationship with their clients in today's dynamic global marketplace. Personal connection is becoming increasingly important to a growing number of businesses. A unit trust is an unincorporated common store structure that enables assets to hold resources and give benefits that go directly to singular unit proprietors as opposed to reinvesting them once again into the reserve.The aim of this research is to emphasise the significance of personal connection and unit trust in the service industry. This research was conducted using a questionnaire that was distributed to 200 customers of unit trust agents in Penang. It can be concluded that relationship marketing is essentially corresponded with personal connection and consumer loyalty as well as client retention.

The Indian mutual fund's industry, which started its excursion with the foundation of the Unit Trust of India in 1964, has seen unobtrusive development lately. There has been developing both regarding AUM just as the assortment of items advertised. As on December 2015, the investors in India have a choice to look over in excess of 1,000 of mutual funds plans spread across 44 fund houses with a complete AUM estimation of '13.46 lakh crores. The passage of unfamiliar players has prompted the presentation of an assortment of inventive items to suit the developing necessities of Indian investors. The Indian mutual fund's industry was discovered to be overwhelmed by institutional investors.

Unit Trust Schemes provide diversification, liquidity, professional management among other benefits. In order to diversify the funds raised from various unit holders, fund managers adopt a criterion with which funds are allocated optimally. A descriptive research design was adopted, and the study period was 5-years. The ratio of the composition of different asset classes to the fund value was used as the independent variables. Fund age was used as the control variable. Sharpe ratio was used to measure investment returns and that represented the dependent variable of the study. Data was collected from secondary sources and a multiple linear regression model was adopted to assess the association of the variables. Collected data showed normality traits, positive autocorrelation when measured using Pearson correlation coefficients. The data also showed mixed results for multicollinearity tests. The weight of money market instruments, corporate bonds, treasury bonds and equity significantly affected performance of Unit Trust Scheme funds. They all had probability values in the interval of 0 and 0.05. Therefore, the study concluded that asset allocation significantly affects how a fund will perform. Other factors such as timing, manager experience and prevailing economic conditions have to be considered when evaluating performance of a fund. Keywords: Asset allocation, Financial performance, Unit trust schemes, Kenya.

A new mathematical model for Islamic unit trust fund was constructed based on the Integration model and the gaps discovered from existing model of Islamic unit trust in Malaysia. The gaps are payment of zakat/tax and additional benefit for investors. The aim of this study is to investigate the acceptance of public on this new constructed mathematical model. A total of 150 respondents were chosen among investors from Terengganu which has at least one unit of Islamic unit trust fund in Malaysia. The questionnaires distributed consist of four variables, where three were independent variables and one was dependent variable and analysed by using Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS). By using a Spearman’s correlation, it is found that each independent variable has moderate and strong correlation with the single variable. This can be concluded that the public has accepted this new constructed mathematical model. This study suggested that this new mathematical model is implemented by Islamic unit trust management in Malaysia and also, for investors to choose the Islamic unit trust which offer more benefits.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the Shariah governance practices of Islamic fund management companies (IFMCs) in Malaysia, with the principal goal of reviewing the need for a comprehensive Shariah governance framework for the Islamic fund management industry. Design/methodology/approach The study was conducted using a qualitative approach via 14 semi-structured interviews with three companies (i.e. Company A, Company B and Company C) involving face-to-face interviews, telephone interviews and emails. Data from the interviews were recorded and later analysed using content analysis. Findings The study finds that Shariah governance processes among the IFMC examined are well-managed; and the current regulations issued by the regulators are sufficient to ensure the Shariah compliance of Islamic fund management industry. In spite of the absence of a comprehensive Shariah governance framework for the industry, most Shariah functions (i.e. Shariah risk management, Shariah review and Shariah audit) are performed by the parent company, except for Shariah research. Nevertheless, Shariah research is not an important function in Islamic fund management because the investment instruments are generally selected from a predetermined list of Shariah-compliant investment options. Practical implications The study offers an overview of Shariah governance practices in the Islamic fund management industry to policymakers and practitioners for the future development of Shariah governance practices among IFMC. Originality/value This is the first paper to study Shariah governance practices in the Islamic fund management industry in Malaysia.

There is increasing interest among investors in one of the latest investment vehicles - unit trusts. Unit trusts have several advantages as investments in comparison to other investment vehicles, as they are managed by fund managers and tied down by a trust deed. These advantages can be traced back to the investment diversification, professional management of the unit trust and the liquidity flow that can be obtained through sale and purchase of the unit trust. This paper presents an argument towards the development of the conceptual framework for Islamic unit trust funds, explored using references to the regulations in Malaysia, reviewing the types of unit trust funds, their distinctive features, Shariah principles that operate in the management of unit trust industry in Malaysia and the contributions that can be generated from unit trust fund to society. Some of the essential features of Islamic unit trust funds depend on the prohibition of riba, gharar and maysir, strict stock screening processes and purification processes. The main challenges to the unit trust industry are also discussed.

This study sought to evaluate the relationship between equity unit trust fund flows measured as purchases and sales and the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) stock market return. The study employed Vector Autoregressive model and tested for Granger causality using monthly data for the period starting January 2010 to December 2017. The granger causality results showed that equity fund sales contain information that can explain stock market return and stock market return contain information that can explain equity fund purchases thus unidirectional causality. Impulse response results showed that equity fund purchases have a predominantly positive relationship with NSE stock market return and NSE stock market return have a positive relationship with equity fund purchases. This implies that an increase in stock market return will lead equity fund managers to purchase more securities and as the equity fund purchases increase, the demand for those stocks will increase causing the stock prices to increase and consequently increase stock market return. In contrast, equity fund sales are predominantly negatively related with stock market return and stock market return is also negatively related to equity funds sales. As the stock market return increase, the equity fund managers will decrease their sales. As the sales increase, the supply for those stocks will increase causing a decrease in prices and consequently a decrease in stock market return. Equity fund sales explain the variation in stock market return more than equity fund purchases while stock market return is a determinant of equity fund purchases and equity fund sales.

The relationships between several crown and tree properties and timber quality were examined on three softwood species: Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco), Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst) and Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr). Crown and stem characteristics were collected on 487 standing trees, and their acoustic velocity measured using a stress-wave device. Of the trees measured, 60 were chosen for further testing, stratified by crown social class and cut into structural sized boards (N =1342). Each board was assessed with regard to knots using a grading X-ray machine, after which all boards were destructively tested in four-point bending and their mechanical properties (elastic modulus, bending strength and density) evaluated. To exclude the effect of branchiness across the crown social classes, mechanical properties were also examined on small clear samples cut from the undamaged section of the tested boards, a total of 1303 specimens were tested destructively in bending. Multi-level models based on Bayesian data analysis were used to evaluate the relationships between recorded characteristics, acoustic velocities and mechanical properties. Considerable differences in acoustic velocities were found between crown social classes, with suppressed trees having the highest velocities. This trend was also confirmed in mechanical properties of structural-sized boards and small clear specimens, suggesting that branchiness is not the primary cause of differences. Results indicate that slenderness affects both tree stiffness and the properties of sawn timber differently across the crown social classes. The relationship is negative in suppressed trees (increasing slenderness leads to a decrease in velocity or mechanical properties) and positive in dominant and co-dominant trees. The effect of crown projection area on either tree acoustic velocity or mechanical properties differs between social classes. In general, it was found to be positive, therefore an increase in crown projection area leads to an increase in either tree acoustic velocity or wood properties of timber. This trend is more evident in sawn timber than in acoustic velocities. The effects appear to be species dependant. No evidence was found of the effect of crown ratio, crown eccentricity or crown roundness on either the examined wood properties or acoustic velocities. Results confirm that there is a link between crown/stem development and timber quality. They indicate that in order to increase the overall quality of timber produced, the proportions of crown social classes in final stand composition should be adjusted with thinning. The first author would like to gratefully acknowledge the support from a Teagasc Walsh Fellowship in the conduct of this work. The authors would like to thank Coillte and the Irish Forestry Unit Trust for enabling access to the forests and providing the testing material. The use of GoldenEye-702 machine was kindly provided by the Murray Timber Group while Martin Bacher from MiCROTEC helped with the scanning of the boards. peer-reviewed 2020-12-28

The differences in skill expectations and knowledge are amongst factors that contribute to the variances when men and women choose financial products. Women are claimed to be risk averse, somewhat insecure, lacking self-confidence and interest in financial investment products. Nevertheless, the evolving working and educational environment has changed this stereotype, wherein women are increasingly more educated, knowledgeable, and are more exposed to investments. Gender equality between men and women in terms of the volume of investments has turned into a requirement that boosts economic growth with people being the most important factor to contribute through investing habit. This cannot be realised if only men are involved in investment. Financial institutions aim certain figures of targeted investment volume each year. As such, this study identified the factors of women investments, particularly in Islamic unit trusts. A total of 201 respondents were selected via the convenience sampling technique. The Likert scale questionnaires were analysed using SMART PLS software. As a result, several investment behaviours, including investment objectives, return expectations, awareness, and risk attitude, emerged as factors that influenced women investors to choose unit trusts. The study outcomes are beneficial in devising effective strategies that may attract women to invest in Islamic unit trust. Besides, certain agencies should conduct campaigns or seminars on financial literacy for this potential sector, so as to enhance their knowledge in investing in Islamic unit trusts. A total of 201 respondents were selected via the convenience sampling technique. The Likert scale questionnaires were analysed using SMART PLS software. As a result, several investment behaviours, including investment objectives, return expectations, awareness, and risk attitude, emerged as factors that influenced women investors to choose unit trusts. The study outcomes are beneficial in devising effective strategies that may attract women to invest in Islamic unit trust. Besides, certain agencies should conduct campaigns or seminars on financial literacy for this potential sector, so as to enhance their knowledge in investing in Islamic unit trusts.

Paper Series IV is the centrepiece of this Paper Series that evaluate the new Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 and its innovations and the implications they have for corporate finance and securities transactions, given that it considers company’s securities, which are the financial instruments traded or exchanged or hedged in virtually all finance and securities transactions. Company’s securities are the basis or the foundation of every company with shares. Securities include shares, debentures, debenture stock, bonds, notes (other than promissory notes) and units under a unit trust scheme. This Paper Series IV(A) discusses Company’s Securities, particularly in respect of shares, share capital, disclosure of person with significant control and shares transactions.

The objective of this study is to develop items for the choice of the fund in unit trust fund investment in Malaysia by looking at the behavioural factors influencing the retail investors. The validity and reliability test have been applied to all the constructs. The respondents were from Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang and Kuala Lumpur. The data were analyzed using SPSS. Exploratory factor analysis was used to group the items in the process of measuring the following dimensions: (i) Snake Bite Effect; (ii) Past Success; (iii) Advice and information; (iv) Illusion of Knowledge and (vi) Judgment of fund. The results of the analysis highlighted the development of three primary underlying variables, namely considering the past, financial knowledge and miscalibration. These instruments can be used by unit trust companies, the authorities of unit trust and other banking’s product to understand the behaviour of their clients and later, can implement it to the expected new customers, and it will provide a glimpse on how behavioural factors influence the choice of fund.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of selected macroeconomic variables in influencing the movement of net asset value (NAV) of the Islamic unit trust funds (UTFs) in Malaysia. In efforts to arrive at more enriching findings, the UTFs are further categorised into equity, bond, balanced, fixed, mixed, money market and feeder funds.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopts the vector autoregression framework (Johansen and Juselius (1990), cointegration test and vector error correction model to analyse the relationship between the macroeconomic variables and the NAVs of the various type of funds.FindingsThe study shows that there is a significant long-run equilibrium relationship between the macroeconomic variables and the NAV of all Islamic UTFs in Malaysia. Despite of this, the findings show that different funds have different responses to the movements of the macroeconomic variables.Practical implicationsThe results of the study are of significant importance to the various stakeholders in the Islamic UTF industry. Investors benefit in terms of getting the inputs on their investment decisions as to whether to buy, hold or sell fund units within their investment portfolio in the long run, along with building their optimal portfolio diversification investment strategy, especially in reallocating their assets distribution between the various types of funds in the UTFs industry. For the policy-makers, the findings of the study may assist them in evaluating the suitability of the existing economic policies as to whether they positively or negatively contribute to the development of the Islamic UTFs.Originality/valueThis paper fulfils the need to understand how unit-holders can strategise and diversify their portfolio investments in the Malaysian Islamic UTFs industry based on detailed understanding and knowledge derived from rational and scientific inputs.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to formulate a model for waqf financing of public goods and mixed public goods in Malaysia which constitute the country’s federal government expenditures. The model is built on the basis of understanding the concept of waqf, learning from waqf institutions of the past and present and addressing specific Malaysian waqf issues. Design/methodology/approach This study uses both primary and secondary data. The primary data originate from semi-structured interviews of waqf academicians from the Islamic economics and Islamic finance fields, waqf government officials and private sector institutions that are involved in waqf management. The secondary data come from the Malaysian Federal Constitution, law enactments, books, e-books, bulletins, journals, conference proceedings, government reports and websites. Findings By synthesizing the data, it is found that return from cash waqf investment in unit trust can be used to finance 11 items of federal government expenditures. The overall process can be managed by Yayasan Waqaf Malaysia through a collaboration with an Islamic unit trust firm. Practical implications This research shows how waqf can practically assist the Malaysian federal government in financing public goods and mixed public goods. It indirectly shows an alternative source of financing for these goods. Other economies can also learn and adapt from the model developed in this paper. Originality/value This paper attempts to revive the function of waqf as a provider of public goods and mixed public goods from Islamic history. Inadvertently, this paper also introduces waqf as a possible fiscal tool.

Based on Malaysian data covering the period from April 2006 to December 2015, this article investigates the informational efficiency of the Islamic unit trust market. The study considers various types of Islamic unit trust funds and analyzes their relationship with selected macroeconomic variables. The authors apply the Engle and Granger [1987] and Granger [1969] causality tests to seven models comprising different types of Islamic unit trust funds. The results suggest that Islamic equity, balance, fixed, and feeder funds violate the efficient market hypothesis (EMH), while the Islamic bond, mixed, and money market funds hold for the weak form of EMH. These results provide empirical evidence to guide fund managers and unit-holders who are considering market efficiency in strategizing their trading proficiency in UTFs. The outcomes also enable authorities to take steps toward improving fund disclosure practices, so that prices immediately reflect relevant information.

This study attempts to allocate the fund management expenses of actively managed South African general equity unit trusts between active and passive management portions, thereby calculating the imp...

Purpose The efficiency of unit trust (UT) funds from quite number of contexts across the globe has been highlighted in previous literature. Yet, there is dearth of research that empirically investigates the factors that influence the selection of UT funds by retailers, particularly in the Malaysian setting. This paper aims to narrow this research gap, whereby perception of past performance, perception of funds’ commitment to Shari’ah compliance, perception of funds’ size and perception of risk tolerance are hypothesized to exert statistically significant influences on the selection of UT funds by retail investors in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach The empirical study uses a quantitative research approach whereby survey data have been sampled from 140 retail investors from around Malaysia, using simple random sampling technique. Data analysis has been carried out using multiple regression analysis employing SPSS version 20.0. Findings The empirical research finds that perceptions of fund size and Shari’ah compliance significantly influence the selection of UT among retail investors in Malaysia. However, there were no enough evidences to support the claims that perceptions of past performance and of risk tolerance influence the selection of UT among Malaysian retail investors. Research limitations/implications This research is cross-sectional and uses data from Malaysia only. Practical implications The findings from this research will have enormous implications for policymakers in the accounting and finance sectors of government and private financial institutions and for individual professional Malaysian investors. In particular, investors in Malaysia and potential investors abroad may be enlightened by the findings of this research. Again, Islamic financial institutions may use the findings to boost their performance improvement interventions, thus, having clear evidence of the actual factors that influence retailers in the Malaysian setting. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is among the pioneering research works that empirically explores the factors that influence Malaysian retailers to invest in UT funds. This research is expected to stimulate further research in this novel area.

The study explores EPF investors’ knowledge, experience and behavior towards investing in Islamic and conventional unit trusts in Malaysia. 110 valid responses were collected through surveys among government and private employees residing in Klang Valley area. Based on Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), it is found that majority of the respondents have enough knowledge about Islamic and conventional unit trusts while they have more experiences with the Islamic unit trust compared to the conventional. With regards to the EPF investors’ behaviour, most of them are heavily relied on various source of information to make decision on investing in the Islamic unit trust. Results of this research is very significant to proof that besides other sources of information, knowledge on both Islamic and conventional unit trust is relevant to make decision for future financial planning.

The savings rate among South Africans is too low, and increasing the savings rate is critical for the financial wellbeing of citizens and for the country. Many South Africans do not make use of formal savings products, including unit trusts. However, there is a need to increase the use of unit trusts and thus the savings rate, and ultimately the financial wellbeing of consumers. Unit trusts are well-designed savings/investment vehicles, allowing for small investment amounts with affordable cost structures catering for consumers with different risk profiles. Therefore this study will focus on investigating consumers’ perceptions of unit trusts by identifying the factors which influence consumers’ intention to use unit trusts as an investment vehicle. A quantitative study was employed and for the empirical investigation a convenience sample of 509 respondents completed a self-administered, structured questionnaire. The data was quantitatively analysed and the main results showed that the Accessibility and Benefits of unit trusts are the most important factors influencing consumers’ Intention to use unit trusts. The strategies explained in this study may assist financial service providers in encouraging consumers to use unit trusts as an investment vehicle. This may increase the country’s savings rate and ultimately improve the financial wellbeing of South Africans.

In the Malaysian unit trust funds (UTFs) industry, the performance of funds is often below the market portfolio and risk-free returns, as the fund managers in Malaysia show poor selectivity performance and lack of timing skills. Individual investors, therefore, need to build and diversify their portfolio investment beyond the fund managers’ portfolio for further risk mitigation and return enrichment. This study investigates the long- and short-run relationships among all net asset values (NAV) of Islamic UTFs in Malaysia over the period from April 2006 to December 2015, using the Johansen–Juselius cointegration test and vector error correction model (VECM) framework. The overall results show that the NAV of all Islamic funds share a long-run equilibrium relationship in Malaysia. On the other hand, the Engle and Granger causality test found that the Malaysian UTFs industry is an inefficient market and experiences predictable behaviors in the short run. The study, therefore, will contribute to both investors and policymakers. Investors (unit holders) could strategize and diversify their portfolio in the long run based on the degree of relationship among all the Islamic funds to achieve better risk–return trade-offs. In the short run, the result may help them predict the behavior of the funds’ NAV in the near future. For policymakers, the Securities Commission of Malaysia, and the Federation of Malaysian Unit Trust Managers can gain enormous advantages to further improve the UTFs industry by focusing on market price efficiency and a robust regulatory framework of portfolio diversification strategies for each type of fund to be more flexible and to help in eliminating such restrictions on fund managers’ operation diversification for improving UTFs returns to align them with the experience of the developed market.

It is worldly known that one of the main obstacles which is often faced by the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) practitioners is the ability to access sources of funding. At the time where the absorption of banking credit to MSMEs is still very limited, the role of sharia capital market is considered as an alternative to support this limitation. Expanding the role of sharia capital market finds it moment when Indonesia Finance Service Authority (FSA) issued regulations that provide space for the capital market to also active in real sector businesses. In accordance with the FSA Rules N0.37/2014, mutual fund (unit trust) in the form of Collective Investment Contract (CIC) - Limited Investment/ Participation Fund (LPF) has the objective to pave the way for mutual fund investors to make direct investments in real investments. The proposed model that might be realized to smoothen the intermediary role of sharia capital market to the development of MSMEs is through the hybrid model that might linking mutual fund/investment manager and corporate, particularly venture capital. Using Analytical Network Process (ANP) approach this paper indicates that with the value of rater agreement 1.0, the research found that there are four main cluster problems which become an obstacle the proposed model, namely: (a) the reputation of mutual fund/investment manager; (b) investment grade rating of corporate (venture capital); (c) risk appetiate of investor as shahib al-mal; and (d) government regulation. Policy recommendation that might become solution, according to the value of rater agreement 1.0 is sequentially as follow, namely: (a) fully support from government; especially for a relatively new mutual fund with no experience in the capital markets industry; (b) Corporate (venture capital) should be able to offer Islamic Microfinance Finance Institutions (IMFIs) and MSMEs that have good business feasibility to the mutual fund/investment manager as well as investor; (c) the government should be able to guarantee legal certainty in the context of protection, including advocacy for investors; and last but not least (d) There is an extremely hope that investors could change their investment behavior paradigm, from risk averse to risk taker.Keywords: Sharia capital market, Mutual fund, Venture capital, MSMEJEL Classification: G1, G23, G24

Purpose The purpose of this study is to present a framework regarding the use of Sharīʿah non-compliant assets as rahn (pledge) and to provide the Sharīʿah analysis on the application of numerous collateral instruments, including financial assets such as shares, unit trusts, current accounts and investment accounts which are Sharīʿah non-compliant. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a library-based approach to examine the concept and requirements of rahn, deliberate the classification of Sharīʿah non-compliant assets and delineate the Sharīʿah views on the use of Sharīʿah non-compliant assets as pledges. It also examines the various forms of pledge available and offered in the market using document analysis as well as through discussion with industry practitioners. Findings In general, the study concludes that Sharīʿah non-compliant assets, either due to their essence or due to the means of acquisition where there is no ownership from Sharīʿah perspective, cannot be used as rahn. This study also provides the Sharīʿah analysis on the use of modern instruments such as shares, unit trusts, current accounts, investment accounts and insurance policy as pledges. Originality/value The paper provides a reference source for regulators in formulating an appropriate policy and framework on Sharīʿah-compliant collateral; Sharīʿah committees of Islamic financial institutions in arriving at Sharīʿah decisions on collateral; and industry practitioners in establishing internal policies and procedures on collateral.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate the performance of 191 equity unit trusts in an emerging market, South Africa over the period from February 2006 to January 2016, which captures different market conditions (pre-global financial crisis, crisis and recovery periods). Besides testing for managerial ability, both cross-sectional regression and the non-parametric rank correlation test are used to test whether the performance generated by unit trusts does persist.Design/methodology/approachTo evaluate the managerial ability of portfolio managers, two widely used methods, the Treynor-Mazuy (1966) model and Henriksson-Merton (1981) model, are employed. Both models test whether portfolio managers have stock selection and market timing ability. The cross-sectional regression and the rank correlation test are implemented which account for both parametric and non-parametric approaches of persistence testing, respectively.FindingsWeak evidence of stock selection as well as market timing ability was found. Moreover, most of the unit trusts are reported to have insignificant coefficients. When testing for performance persistence using returns, the Sharpe ratio and the Sortino ratio as performance metrics, the overall results also revealed weak evidence of persistence that is equally spread across winning and losing funds.Originality/valueWhile research on unit trusts’ performance has been conducted in emerging economies, little has been done in testing for managerial ability in general and in South Africa in particular. Moreover, the research tends to focus more on one class – Equity General. This paper extends the performance literature by testing whether portfolio managers in the South African equity unit trusts industry have stock selection and market timing ability.

PurposeThe South African listed property market has changed its legal basis from property loan stock companies and property unit trusts to adopt the more familiar international structure, real estate investment trusts. The main distinction is how shareholding is structured and investment returns are paid out to shareholders, which results in a different tax treatment. It is hoped that this change would attract more foreign investment, but it is questionable if this is sufficient to convince global investors who, amidst a seeming worsening of the stability in the political and economic environment, would probably need more insight into aspects such as investment decision making within these South African organisations. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachUsing a balanced scorecard (BSC) framework, this study investigates the relevance of investment decision-making frameworks in South Africa. A survey using a sample of institutional investors that are included in the South African Property Market Index was conducted.FindingsThe study found similarities in decision-making priorities of South African institutional investors to those of previous studies. With the focus on retail property, tenant mix and secondary to that, quality of the centre management team is found to be important for forecasting expected returns in a retail investment decision environment. Diversification strategies were found to have similar results to previous studies, leaning more towards geographic location than economic location. Further, the study suggested the use of a BSC framework, linking the financial information and different financial ratios to nonfinancial aspects that need specific consideration in a retail investment environment.Research limitations/implicationsRetail property is considered to be of particular concern due to the business enterprise value that could be created if superior management techniques are applied. The investment decision stage concerned with forecasting expected returns relies on financial and quantitative models such as those derived from Modern Portfolio Theory. In a shopping mall environment, however, future performance is driven by nonfinancial factors, for example, tenant mix and superior customer experience. Therefore, forecasting expected returns in a retail environment requires a nuanced approach relative to other commercial property sectors.Originality/valueThe paper is considered to be original in its analysis of the retail real estate market in South Africa. This offers new insight into retail properties specifically, but also how investors in South Africa react to decision-making practices. This adds value in the internationalisation of the property market and the consistency and transparent practices applied globally.

In this study, we examine the impact of regulatory changes in Shariah screening guidelines as introduced by the Financial Services Act 2013 in Malaysia. The adoption of new regulations for Shariah-screening methodology affects the Shariah-compliance status of firms resulting in a considerable number of firms who either become non-compliant and removed from the list of Shariah-compliant firms or switched to Shariah-compliant. We investigate underlying determinants that governed such a switching behavior including the capital structure and ownership structure. Our results after controlling for size and financial performance indicate that financial leverage and owners’ equity play a key role in explaining the switching behavior of Shariah firms. We also found that ownership structure plays a vital role in a firm’s decision to stay Shariah-compliant. Specifically, shares held by institutional investors (unit trust, endowment funds) and individual/family play an essential role for firms to stay Shariah-compliant. The empirical findings suggest that demand for Shariah-compliant investment in Malaysia emerges from the smaller investors investing in mutual funds/unit trust and overall composition of the population.

This chapter evaluates short- and long-term relationships between 34 Islamic unit trusts and the Islamic stock market after the global financial crisis. The study collects data from Bloomberg's database from 2009 until 2012 and employs J-J cointegration to identify the long-term relationship while Granger causality test is used to investigate how the changes in Islamic stock market can influence the changes in Islamic unit trusts in the short term. The finding indicates that 61.76 percent out of the 34 Islamic unit trusts tested do not have long-term equilibrium with the Islamic stock market. Furthermore, only a few Islamic trusts responded to the changes in the Islamic stock market. This study is important for at least two reasons: its role in filling the gap in the literature of unit trust—stock markets nexus in Islamic finance; and its findings provide relevant information that can benefit investors and fund managers.