Manzil surpasses $100 million in halal mortgages for Muslim Canadians

Toronto-based Islamic FinTech startup Manzil has surpassed $100 million CAD in total halal mortgage financings after doubling the size of its mortgage business in less than a year.

In an exclusive interview with BetaKit, Manzil co-founder and CEO Mohamad Sawwaf described the milestone as “a testament” to the strength of the company’s mortgage product, and the demand for it. He said Manzil has provided halal mortgages to approximately 240 Muslim-Canadian households.

Manzil has built up a waitlist of $10 billion worth of applications since the startup first launched its halal mortgages in 2020.

Sawwaf claimed that this represents the most business that any halal mortgage financier has done in Canada to date. He argued that the $100-million milestone “lays the groundwork” for Manzil to grow to $1 billion and beyond, noting he sees a $250-billion total addressable market for halal mortgages in Canada. As Sawwaf noted, however, Manzil’s vision for becoming “the North American Islamic neobank” spans more than just mortgages.

Founded in 2017, Manzil aims to help Muslim Canadians and Muslim Americans build wealth in a way that is consistent with their ethical and spiritual obligations. The company caters to a growing demographic that is largely shut out of the traditional financial system by a lack of options that satisfy their religious requirements. Many Muslims refrain from investing in any companies or products tied to alcohol, tobacco, gambling, or weapons, and don’t use financial services that involve interest.

Manzil has been working to build what Sawwaf has called “the halal version of Wealthsimple.” The startup, which got its start offering halal mortgages in Canada, has since expanded to offer a wider variety of financial products for Muslims, including United States (US) residents. Sawwaf claimed to BetaKit in July that Manzil remains well-capitalized and expects to reach break-even profitability by the end of 2025.

Mortgages represent a key pillar in Manzil’s overall strategy. The startup’s halal mortgages use capital sourced from the Manzil Mortgage Fund, which trades on the Cboe Canada exchange and acts like a fixed-income fund. Manzil is an AAOIFI member, and the company’s halal mortgage products are based on murabaha (cost-plus sale) and musharaka (co-ownership partnership) structures. They are designed to adhere to globally recognized Islamic finance standards and independently reviewed and certified by IFAAS.

According to Manzil’s website, over 10,000 Canadian Muslims use the startup’s products. Manzil’s mortgage backlog also offers clear evidence of strong demand. Sawwaf said that Manzil has built up a waitlist of $10 billion worth of applications since the startup first launched its halal mortgages in 2020, and he claimed that this list is growing by about $100 million per month at the moment without any marketing.

Manzil brought its halal investment services to the US earlier this year following its purchase of American peer Aghaz Investments in 2024.

Manzil’s halal mortgages are now available in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Québec, and the company hopes to bring them to remaining provinces within the coming year. They are not yet available in the US.

The startup’s growth strategy involves more than just mortgages: it is also targeting an end-of-year launch for its own savings and spending accounts with partner DC Bank.

“The goal of that is to create an additional product that we know our community needs and there’s demand for, and attract a different set of deposits that we can also augment and supplement our mortgage program and potentially launch other financing programs,” Sawwaf said, citing auto and business financing as areas Manzil would like to enter in the future.

Sawwaf noted that Manzil’s Aghaz acquisition also gave the startup the capacity to launch its own halal exchange-traded fund, something that the company has already filed to do in the US. It expects to eventually bring a comparable offering to Canada.

BetaKit reporter Josh Scott is speaking with Sawwaf about the work Manzil is doing to reimagine neobanking in North America on stage at Elevate Festival on Oct. 8.

Feature image courtesy Manzil.