The Satrix Shari'ah Top 40 ETF is the cheapest halal investment product in South Africa and the only Shariah exchange-traded product on the JSE. Those two facts alone make it worth understanding, whether or not you buy it. At a 0.40% total expense ratio against active halal fund fees of 1.04% to 2.36%, STXSHA is the price floor of the entire market, buyable from one unit through any broker, inside or outside a tax-free savings account.
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What it is and where it came from
STXSHA tracks the FTSE/JSE Shari'ah Top 40 Index, physically holding the Shariah-compliant constituents of the JSE Top 40 at index weights. It listed on 6 April 2009 as the NewFunds Shari'ah Top 40 Index ETF in Absa's NewFunds stable (code NFSH40) and was rebranded under Satrix, the Sanlam Group's index house, on 1 March 2023. Seventeen years of listed history matters here, because South Africa's other exchange-traded Shariah experiments did not survive: FNB listed Islamic exchange-traded notes in the mid-2010s, and those ETNs no longer trade. STXSHA is the lone survivor. Fund market capitalisation was around R220 million in July 2026, with quarterly distributions.
How the screening works
Shariah compliance is delivered at the index level, not the fund level. FTSE/JSE retains Yasaar Limited, the Shariah consultancy used across FTSE Russell's global Islamic index franchise, to screen the Top 40: companies providing conventional financial services or dealing in alcohol, non-halal food production, tobacco, weapons and similar prohibited activities are excluded, followed by financial-ratio screens covering debt and interest-bearing assets. The review runs quarterly, so companies enter and exit as they pass or fail.
The consequence of screening the Top 40 is the fund's defining characteristic: concentration. SA banks and insurers are large index weights, and all of them fail the screens. What survives is heavily tilted to resources: Anglo American, Gold Fields, AngloGold Ashanti, BHP, Sasol, Impala Platinum, Sibanye-Stillwater, Glencore, plus names like Mondi and Bidvest. STXSHA is best understood as a concentrated large-cap factor portfolio, not a whole-market proxy. That tilt was a gift recently, with a one-year return of just over 28% at mid-2026 on the resources rally; it will cut the other way in financial-led markets. Our FTSE/JSE Shariah indices explainer unpacks this in detail.
What the fund does not do
This is the part strict investors need in plain terms. STXSHA has no fund-level Shariah supervisory board. No annual Shariah certificate is issued for the ETF itself. And the issuer does not publish purification figures, so investors who follow the practice of purifying non-permissible income must estimate and donate that portion of distributions themselves. The compliance chain rests entirely on the FTSE/Yasaar index methodology, which is credible and published, but it is a different assurance model from an actively certified fund like the Old Mutual Albaraka Equity Fund, where named scholars sign annual certificates and purification is disclosed per distribution. Yasaar's screening thresholds also differ in places from the AAOIFI standards SA's active fund boards apply. None of this makes the ETF non-compliant; it makes the homework yours.
The numbers
- TER: 0.40% including VAT, with a 0.32% management fee and 0.08% transaction costs (January 2026 fund document).
- Minimum: one unit, through any stockbroker or platform including EasyEquities.
- Distributions: quarterly (2025 declarations ranged from 1.22 to 3.50 cents per unit).
- Fund size: roughly R220 million market cap, small enough that large single orders should use limit prices.
- Tax-free savings account eligible on major platforms.
Who should own it
STXSHA is the obvious core equity building block for cost-disciplined halal investors, especially inside a TFSA where the 0.40% fee and zero tax compound together. It is also the easiest first investment in the market: a teenager with the price of one unit can own it through EasyEquities. It should not be a whole portfolio. It is equity only, concentrated, and offers no answer for the defensive sleeve, no scholar board and no purification reporting. The pattern we consistently rate highest is a barbell: STXSHA as cheap core beta, an actively certified fund alongside for governance and diversification, and a sukuk-backed income fund such as the Camissa Islamic High Yield for the defensive allocation.
Verdict
The ETF the South African halal market needed and still under-uses. Unbeatable on cost and access, honest and transparent in what it tracks, structurally lumpy, and silent on purification. Rated B+ on our Halal Money Index: the missing fund-level governance is exactly what separates it from the A-graded active houses. Pair it, don't marry it. Full data on the investing page.
Quick answers
Is STXSHA halal without a fund-level Shariah board?
Its compliance rests entirely on index-level screening by Yasaar for FTSE/JSE, which is credible and published. What you give up versus certified funds: a scholar board reviewing the actual portfolio, purification of distributions and an annual certificate. Many investors accept that at 0.40%; strict investors pair it with purification discipline or choose certified funds.
Compare providers in your state
See side-by-side comparisons of Shariah-compliant products, or let our matcher recommend the best options for your situation.
Where is the cheapest place to buy it?
Fractionally on EasyEquities, ideally inside the tax-free account where the low TER compounds untaxed, with the account flagged Shariah compliant so idle cash between purchases earns no interest. Any JSE broker also works at standard brokerage rates.