New to this? Sukuk vs bonds covers the background this guide assumes, as part of the course.

Sukuk are often described as "Islamic bonds," which is a useful shorthand but not quite right. A conventional bond is a debt instrument: you lend money, you get interest back. A sukuk certificate instead represents partial ownership of a real underlying asset, project or investment; returns come from that asset's actual performance (rent, profit-share, sale proceeds), not from interest on a loan. AAOIFI governs how these structures are meant to work under Shariah Standard No. 17 (Investment Sukuk).

The one practical option on the ASX

As of this guide, there is exactly one ASX-listed sukuk product accessible to ordinary retail investors: the Hejaz Sukuk Active ETF (ASX: SKUK), which listed in November 2023 as Australia's first sukuk ETF. It trades like any other ASX security: buy it through a standard broker, no special account or minimum beyond a normal share purchase. It's screened to AAOIFI standards and holds a portfolio of sukuk instruments rather than a single issue, giving some diversification within the asset class.

This isn't a recommendation to buy it. It's a statement of fact about what currently exists. Read the current PDS and Target Market Determination directly before deciding anything, and check our Halal ETFs on the ASX guide for the single-issuer risk that applies here too. Every ASX-listed Islamic ETF in Australia currently comes from Hejaz.

Why "just buy international sukuk" isn't realistic advice

A genuine global sukuk market exists. Sovereign sukuk from Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia are the most liquid internationally. In practice this isn't accessible to most Australian retail investors: typical minimum investments run $100,000–$200,000 USD, purchased through international brokers or Islamic banks that don't generally serve small Australian retail accounts. For almost everyone reading this, that market doesn't functionally exist as an option, whatever the theoretical global sukuk figures suggest.

If your circumstances genuinely put you in reach of that market (meaningful investable wealth and an existing relationship with an international broker or Islamic bank), that's a conversation for a financial adviser with direct experience in institutional sukuk access, not something a retail-facing guide like this one can responsibly walk you through.

The honest summary

If you want sukuk exposure in Australia today, SKUK is genuinely the option, not one option among many. That may well change (more issuers, more products), and this guide will be updated if it does. For now, treat "sukuk investing in Australia" and "SKUK" as close to the same conversation.