Incorporated in Malaysia in January 2007, DagangHalal was set-up to capitalise on the growing halal industry and offers three principal components in the form of e-marketplace, e-commerce & web solutions; halal certificate repository and halal events; as well as training, education and consultancy services.
Speaking at a media briefing in Impiana Hotel Kuala Lumpur yesterday, its chairman Muhadzir Mohd Isa said halal trade remained one of the largest untapped global markets, and DagangHalal was grabbing the opportunity to function as the focal centre for it.
“We have not only created history by becoming the first halal business to be listed on the exchange but we have also become among the first companies to have raised the highest proceeds in the history of the London ISDX Growth Market,” Muhadzir said.
He explained that DagangHalal successfully raised gross proceeds of approximately £4.2 million (RM23.9 million) by way of a subscription of approximately £3.9 million (RM22.1 million) from Malaysian investors and a placing of approximately £0.3 million (RM1.7 million) from UK investors.
DagangHalal’s Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Hazli Bin Mohamed Hussain, meanwhile explained that the ‘halal’ concept was not limited solely to religion. He said DagangHalal’s tagline of “Healthy, Harmless, Hygienic” – was what the company in essence stood for, as it offered a “complete package” to global markets in terms of assisting with the halal process from A to Z.
“The market size for the halal industry is huge, you either join or you get left behind.”
Muhadzir, adding to this, said that the halal industry’s potential for growth made it an exceedingly lucrative market to be tapped into and a major global opportunity not to be missed.
“The global halal market is estimated to be worth over USD2.3 trillion (RM9 trillion), while the global halal food market alone is the fastest growing segment of the worldwide food industry and worth USD1.1 trillion (RM4.29 trillion),” Muhadzir said.
Its e-marketplace offering called DagangHalal.com, is a global B2B (business-to-business) e-marketplace for the trade of halal products and services. It also provides a trading platform to facilitate e-commerce between halal-verified business entities. According to Mohamed Hazli, DagangHalal.com is the only halal e-marketplace that offers halal verification services.
When asked if DagangHalal would expand to a B2C (business-to-consumer) model, Mohamed Hazli said that it was only “a matter of time” before it did.
“It is a natural progression. Our e-commerce services already enables us to provide a B2C model, and it’s only a matter of time before we look into it seriously,” he said.
Meanwhile Francis Chong, Managing Director of DagangHalal said that being listed on London’s ISDX Growth Market was an opportunity for the company to expand into the global market. He said this in response to a question by FMT, on why the company had decided not to be listed on Bursa Malaysia instead.
“London is the best financial centre in the world. DagangHalal wants to have a global profile and London is a gateway to global businesses.
“We are an innovative company and we are very technology-based. When people think of ‘halal’ they immediately think Islam; we are trying to set aside this perception of religion, and we believe that this is the way of the future,” said Chong.
DagangHalal’s long term goal is to become the “world’s digital halal exchange” and to deliver a single platform and a focal centre for the halal industry.
“By 2020, we hope to form a World Digital Halal Exchange. That is our vision.
“For example, if you would like to export your product to Dubai, you can go directly to the Exchange and download a JAKIM-certified halal certificate and export your product. We want to facilitate and simplify halal business transactions anywhere, anytime,” Muhamed Hazli said.