National Bank of Kuwait has launched its first US dollar money market fund adhering to Shariah principles.

The investment objective is to achieve competitive returns by investing in short and medium term Shariah compliant instruments that are available in the financial markets, the bank said.

The new fund comes after the big success and the ongoing enthusiasm for the Watani KD Money Market Fund According to Islamic Shariah Principles that was launched in February 2007, said Salah Yousef Al-Fulaij, general manager of investment services and treasury group.

The fund aims to achieve returns in excess of the USD fixed deposit rate, through investing in high quality money market instruments such as Murabaha transactions and Ijara.

Furthermore, the fund will seek to increase its net asset value while achieving a high level of liquidity by investing in high-quality instruments, he said.

The fund is denominated in US Dollars, with a minimum investment of $25,000 and additional investments of $1,000. The fund is open-ended with weekly subscriptions and redemptions.

Al-Fulaij also noted that the Watani USD Money Market Fund, along with other NBK Islamic Funds, is under the supervision and guidance of the independent Shariah Advisory Committee, which guarantees that all operations and procedures are according to Islamic Shariah principles. In addition, the fund enjoys an independent financial credibility. - TradeArabia News Service