Tripfez marks milestone as Malaysia’s first Islamic Digital Economy (IDE) compliant travel firm
Dubai, UAE, 15th April, 2019: Tripfez, a provider of halal travel content to several major OTAs in the Middle East, has marked a major milestone as Malaysia’s first Islamic Digital Economy (IDE) compliant travel firm.
The Online Travel Agency (OTA), Asia’s leading provider of Muslim-friendly travel packages, which recently merged with the Middle East’s award-winning holiday booking site, holidayme, is the only company in the travel industry to receive a verification and listing by the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC).
This distinction follows MDEC’s recent introduction of Malaysia’s first IDE Mi’yar as it consolidates its position as the world’s leading Islamic Economy and reinforces Tripfez’s reputation as a leading halal travel brand, regionally and in global growth markets including the Middle East.
To be listed as IDE compliant, companies are required to comply with the Shariah Compliant Startup Mi'yar and Mi'yar for Technology Product & Services, which is validated through a screening process to scrutinise business activities in the digital space, as well as the operational end-to-end processes within the company - from product and services and financial management to capital structure.
Shariah advisory firm, the Amanie Group, which specialises in Islamic financial services, conducts the screening process.
“IDE compliancy sets Tripfez apart from the competition, providing a clear message to our customers and our investors that we are the leading Muslim travel brand in every respect, from the products and services we offer to the way in which we conduct our business,” said Tripfez Founder & CEO, Faeez Fadhlillah, Asia’s most widely-known and influential entrepreneur in the halal tourism arena.
“A robust Islamic Digital Economy provides Malaysia with a distinct competitive advantage and Tripfez is proud to be leading the way in the field of travel and tourism, positioning the country as the world’s leader in Muslim-friendly online travel services.”
The global Islamic economy is expected to reach US$3trillion by 2021. Malaysia is already ranked the world’s top Islamic Economy in terms of Islamic Finance, Halal Food and Halal Travel, according to the State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2017-2018 by Thomson Reuters and MDEC’s vision is to propel Malaysia to the number one position in the overall Islamic Digital Economy.
The Digital Economy continues to be a key driver for growth, contributing 18.3% to Malaysia’s GDP in 2017, and is expected to exceed the projected target of 20% by 2020, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
Congratulating the Tripfez team, Norhizam Kadir, Vice President, Growth Ecosystem Development, MDEC, said: “The introduction of Malaysia’s Islamic Digital Economy Mi’yar potentises the country’s vision as a leader in the regional and global Islamic digital arena. We hope that many others will follow Tripfez's example - especially as IDE is open to all companies that meet the criteria. IDE Mi’yar will assist business leaders to deepen their understanding of Syariah compliance and open up the tremendous potential of the global Islamic Digital Economy for their companies.”
Tripfez is playing its part in this national vision as an online portal that enables Muslim travellers to book accommodation and packages to meet their faith-based needs. The website features more than 200,000 properties worldwide, at least 93,000 of which are certified by its sister company, Salam Standard.
The Kuala Lumpur-headquartered firm recently made the headlines by launching the industry’s first Umrah API connection, giving third-party travel sites access to an Umrah feed. This enables Muslim travellers to search and book flights and hotels for Umrah travel according to multiple criteria, including date of travel and the number of people in their group.
It is powering new Umrah package booking features on Malaysia’s popular Islamic app Raudhah, as well as for holidayme.com – a popular OTA based in the Middle East.
Tripfez, led by Fadhlillah, is playing a major role in promoting Malaysia’s IDE as world leading and continues to win a string of awards and accolades that applaud its contribution to this sector, most recently named one of 18 leading ASEAN start-ups at the 4th ASEAN Rice Bowl StartUp Awards, which recognises outstanding startups that have international potential.
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NOTES TO EDITORS
About Tripfez
Tripfez is an online portal that enables Muslim travellers to book accommodation and travel packages,
that meets their faith-based needs. The website features more than 200,000 properties worldwide, at least 93,000 of which are certified by sister company, Salam Standard – a hospitality information tool that indexes hotels according to the Muslim-friendly amenities and services they offer. Tripfez features the world’s largest database of Muslim-friendly hotels across all seven continents and allows consumers to search according to a range of criteria including price, star rating and hotel brand. Tripfez also enables travellers to book halal-friendly tours in top holiday destinations across the globe and offers an Umrah
API connection to third parties.
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Gemma Greenwood
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