In a bid to tap into the booming Islamic finance sector, U.S.-based Alpaca, a self-clearing broker-dealer and brokerage API provider, has joined forces with ZAD, a Kuwait-headquartered investment platform specializing in Shariah-compliant U.S. stocks and ETFs. The partnership is set to accelerate access to compliant investment products in the Gulf region—and potentially far beyond.

For Alpaca, it’s a calculated expansion into a $5.5 trillion global Islamic finance market projected to hit $7.5 trillion by 2028, according to Standard Chartered. For ZAD, it’s a technological leap forward in offering modern financial products—without compromising Islamic values.

From Niche to Necessary

Shariah-compliant investing has moved from niche to necessity in markets like Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and the UAE. As retail investors increasingly demand products that align with their ethical and religious values, platforms like ZAD are rapidly gaining traction.

“If we were a conventional investment application, we would not have reached the growth levels that we have in the past couple of years,” says Abdullah Alotaibi, Co-Founder and Deputy CEO of ZAD’s fintech brokerage. “They [our users] really appreciate it, they want it, and they’re very careful with what they buy.”

That level of scrutiny is exactly what has made scaling in this space so difficult. Many fintechs claim to “localize” but stop at language support or UI tweaks. ZAD, with Alpaca’s help, is aiming higher: rebuilding core financial products from the ground up to comply with Islamic law.

Tech-Driven Compliance: Margin and Options, the Halal Way

The standout feature here is ZAD’s recent rollout of Shariah-compliant Instant Funding, developed in collaboration with Alpaca. But that’s just the start. The companies are also building asset-backed margin trading—a structure that avoids the interest-based lending prohibited in Islamic finance—as well as options trading and high-yield cash accounts.

Unlike traditional brokerages that offer a fixed set of tools, Alpaca’s flexible API allowed ZAD to construct custom investment infrastructure that adheres to the region’s unique requirements.

“There are service providers that tell you, ‘this is what we have, take it or leave it.’ Not Alpaca,” says Alotaibi. “They listen. They understand the region. They’re helping us offer the best possible products to our clients.”

Bigger Than the Gulf

While ZAD’s initial focus is on Kuwait and neighboring GCC markets like Saudi Arabia, the modular, API-based nature of Alpaca’s backend means these tools can be deployed anywhere Islamic finance is in demand—which increasingly includes countries across Southeast Asia and Africa.

What Alpaca and ZAD are creating isn’t just a regional product suite—it’s potentially a global template for Islamic-compliant fintech.

Strategic, Scalable, and (Finally) Shariah-Compliant

This partnership signals a shift: building for Islamic finance no longer means sacrificing innovation for compliance. With API-first architecture and deep local insight, Alpaca and ZAD are proving that modern investing tools—like instant funding and margin trading—can be both sophisticated and spiritually aligned.

“We’re excited to be their partner in delivering Shariah-compliant margin trading, options trading, instant funding, and more,” said Yoshi Yokokawa, CEO and Co-Founder of Alpaca. “Shariah-compliance is a key focus as we look to support and expand financial accessibility globally.”

As Islamic finance increasingly becomes a priority for global fintechs, partnerships like this could define the next wave of expansion—not just for the GCC, but for ethical investing worldwide.