Malaysia’s first-ever Islamic lifestyle super app, TheNoor (Noor Luminous Sdn Bhd) aims to raise RM5 million (USD 1.12 million) via Malaysian impact investment and Islamic equity crowdfunding platform, Ethis.
At a pre-money valuation of RM42,900,000 (USD9.62 million), investors can take part in the equity crowdfunding campaign for TheNoor (which means light in Arabic) with a minimum investment amount of RM500 for 20 shares.
Since launched in January 2021, TheNoor has already gained nearly 6 million downloads on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, empowering over 2.8 million registered users. Aside from helping users achieve their spiritual commitment, the app brings them closer to their religion through continuous learning and exposure to the teachings of Islam through a more fresh, accessible, interactive and individualized method.
The faith-based app aims to help more Muslims live a holistic lifestyle through its variety of in-app features, which include real-time location detection to discover close-by mosques and Qiblah, prayer time schedules, seamless Zakat payment tracking, built-in Faraid algorithm to calculate and allocate estates and weather updates.
The current core application provides a modern and comprehensive on-the-go Al-Quran player that comes with high-resolution audio voice translation options in 5 languages, with more languages soon to be added. It also features Al-Quran reading assistance for beginners.
TheNoor co-founder and chief technology officer, Mohd Izzairi Yamin is an experienced tech entrepreneur having launched a VC-backed startup and received support from agencies such as MRANTI (formerly known as MaGIC). Izzairi said that the investment will be channeled to capitalize on a fast-growing market, increase research and development push, enhance advertising and promotion efforts as well as grow the team.
“The crowdfunding will help us refine our application so that we continue to create offerings that will nurture and enrich the lifestyles of Muslims around the globe. The halal industry is swiftly becoming a competitive and fast-moving sector globally and we want to tap this through tech. Tech enables more Muslims to achieve their spiritual commitment by transforming how we engage with Islam. We are continuously working on a variety of new features to create added value for our users and will see the rollout of more interactive content, educational offerings for kids, Shariah Counters Projections, an e-wallet and more.”
The app is compatible with active gears allowing users to track their Solah patterns and monitor their calorie burn rate during Solah. The in-app marketplace, NoorCommerce, has been revamped, enabling users to browse, purchase and sell halal products in multi currencies.
Noor Neelofa Mohd Noor, TheNoor co-founder and chief executive officer said: “TheNoor was designed for Muslims like you and me who juggles between the demand of modern lives whether at home, work or when we travel. It is a go-to resource for Muslims everywhere to form meaningful relationships with the religion through guided teachings and offerings that are rooted in Islamic principles and ideals. Not only can technology help us be more productive and connected, but it can also help us become better Muslims."
While the app is free, TheNoor employs an easy-to-scale business model and generates revenue through its financial and travel services, partnerships, eCommerce and in-app advertising.
“As the first shariah-compliant ECF platform in Malaysia, there is a natural synergy between us and TheNoor in terms of our core values, propositions and fundamental beliefs to support the rapid growth of the Islamic economy together. At ETHIS, we are honoured to be able to support TheNoor's crowdfunding campaign as part of their continued growth journey and ambition to impact Muslims around the world. We see that as an ongoing effort to circulate good not just amongst Muslims but also involving the general society. This crowdfunding campaign serves as an opportunity for all to support one of the fastest growing Malaysian Islamic-based tech startup by way of investing in them," said Ethis Malaysia Chief Executive Officer Wan Mohd Dazriq Wan Zulkiflee.
This year, in collaboration with Tabung Haji Travel & Services Sdn Bhd (THTS), TheNoor plans to introduce in-app umrah packages, enabling users to conduct everything umrah related- from registrations and bookings right up to the completion of the Islamic pilgrimage. It also includes a mutawif tracker, detailed travel itinerary, travel insurance, currency exchange services and an umrah course for users to get a refresher on rituals.
According to the ‘State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2018/19’ by Thomson Reuters in cooperation with DinarStandard, the global halal market is predicted to reach US$9.71 trillion by 2025, with countries such as Malaysia expected to lead the way in the coming years.
Existing partners of TheNoor include Bank Islam, Fasspay, Fipper, Furada, Google Cloud, King Fahd Glorious Quran Printing, PPZ Kuala Lumpur, Max Money, Split, Tabung Haji Travel, ZeptoExpress and Zurich General Takaful.
TheNoor will be running an Al-Quran recital competition in September 2022. The top 5 winners receive a free Umrah as well as 3 investment blocks in TheNoor worth RM1,500.
Interested investors can partake in TheNoor’s equity crowdfunding campaign here https://ethis.co/my/project/thenoor/.
Source: TheNoor
