Watercress Capital

Our Director of Risk and Strategy, Shai Naseem will be a panelist for the topic ‘Riskification of Ethics: An emerging Paradigm in Internal Audit’ at the State Internal Audit Conference 2025 conducted by Ministry of Finance and Planning on October 1st.

Shai (Aminath Shaeera, CPA Australia ) is a risk professional certified by the Institute of Risk Management pioneering Enterprise Risk Management in the Maldives.

She has been monumental in implementing ERM systems at the likes of Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) and Tradenet Maldives Corporation Limited while providing awareness and training to several other public institutions and private sector organizations.

Shai is also the co-founder and lead consultant of Achievia Consultancy, as well as an Independent Board Director and Audit Committee Chair for Solarelle Insurance Pvt Ltd

Panel Discussion - Internal Audit Conference 2025
Date: 1st October 2025 | Time: 15:00 – 15:45

Title: Riskification of Ethics: An Emerging Paradigm in Internal Audit

Panelists:
• Fareeha Shareef (Managing Partner, Nexia Maldives)
• Aminath Shaeera (Director – Risk and Strategy, Watercress Capital)
• Ash-hadh Abdul Hakeem (Senior Risk and Compliance Analyst, Dhiraagu)

Moderator: Adam Miqdad (Legal Counsel, Ministry of Finance and Planning)

We are proud to have been part of the recent efforts led by the Capital Market Development Authority to strengthen and expand the Maldivian capital market.

We had the privilege of working closely with Mr. David White, an internationally renowned Capital Market Development Specialist with over five decades of experience across Asia, Africa, and beyond. A Fellow of CPA Australia and Founding Director of the Hong Kong Securities Institute, David has advised the World Bank, ADB, IFC, and other major institutions on market reforms, risk management, and infrastructure development.

In the Maldives, David worked in a way that empowered local stakeholders—giving them ownership of the process and the outcomes. His assignment included assessing the current state of the capital market, benchmarking against international best practices, and providing actionable recommendations to strengthen legal frameworks, improve infrastructure, and expand opportunities for investors and issuers alike. His consultative approach—through online meetings, in-depth discussions, and an engaging group workshop—was both collaborative and impactful.

We extend our deepest gratitude to CMDA for leading this important initiative. Our capital market is still at a developing stage, and such efforts are critical to building resilience, investor confidence, and long-term growth.

Representing Watercress Capital at the stakeholder workshop were; Sahaa Asif (Director of Operations) and Aminath Shaeera (Director of Risk and Strategy). The event brought together representatives from all major banks, investment advisory firms, the stock exchange, and key SOEs—reflecting a shared commitment to progress.

We look forward to supporting the next phase of development as the Maldives capital market continues to mature and open new opportunities.

Eid Mubarak!

May Allah reward you and your loved ones with the best of blessings.

إِنَّ ٱلْمُصَّدِّقِينَ وَٱلْمُصَّدِّقَـٰتِ وَأَقْرَضُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًۭا يُضَـٰعَفُ لَهُمْ وَلَهُمْ أَجْرٌۭ كَرِيمٌۭ

Indeed, those men and women who
give in charity and lend to Allah a good loan
will have it multiplied for them, and they
will have an honourable reward.

~ Quran 57:18 | Al Hadid (The Iron)

This Week we had the privilege of conducting an Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) information session for the Executive Committee of Fenaka Corporation Limited .mv

It was a pleasure engaging with a leadership team that is committed to good governance and operational excellence.

Thank you to Fenaka’s Exco for the active participation and insightful discussions!

Yesterday marked the historic groundbreaking for the Project of Islamic University of Maldives - IUM in Hulhumalé. The event was graced by his Excellency President Dr Mohamed Muizzu in the company of several state dignitaries.

We applaud all stakeholders for bringing to fruition, the first ever construction of an educational building in the Maldives financed via a .

To secure finance for this project, our team had worked diligently to navigate the intricacies of the law to research and formulate a workable capital market instrument, prepare the prospectus and list it on the portal of Maldives Stock Exchange

A special thank you to Bank of Maldives, Islamic for fully subscribing to this sukuk and proving unmatched commitment to Islamic Finance development. This also marks the first time in the country that an entity from the banking sector has invested in a Sukuk.

This Sanabil Sukuk is the first of its kind submitted to the Capital Market Development Authority for approval.

Congratulations Islamic University of Maldives - IUM for distributing semi-annual returns of almost MVR 2,700,000 to the Sukuk holders of the IUM Sanabil Project.

This is the first Sukuk in the Maldives to be issued by a statutory body, and not a corporate institution. The Islamic University of the Maldives raised MVR 60,000,000 last year to finance the construction of the Sanabil Building; a tertiary educational building in Phase 01, Hulhumalé.

Capital Market Development Authority

May the rewards of the blessed month be bestowed upon you and your loved ones.

مَّن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يُقْرِضُ ٱللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًۭا فَيُضَـٰعِفَهُۥ لَهُۥٓ أَضْعَافًۭا كَثِيرَةًۭ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ يَقْبِضُ وَيَبْصُۜطُ وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ

"Who will lend to Allah a good loan which Allah will multiply many times over? It is Allah ˹alone˺ who decreases and increases ˹wealth˺. And to Him you will ˹all˺ be returned."

~ Quran 2:245 | Al Baqarah (The Cow)

Join our Director of Operations, Sahaa Asif as he shares his insights on entrepreneurship and startups on the show streaming on Television Maldives tonight at 2230 hrs.

Honored to work with the risk champions of Tradenet Maldives Corporation Limited to complete their final training on Enterprise Risk Management.

It is our privilege to facilitate the ERM system setup at the organization responsible for revolutionizing the digital landscape of the Maldivian public sector.

After concluding this all-day high engagement training workshop, we are confident that Team Tradenet will retain a Risk Aware culture and is fully equipped to address current and emerging risks to the organization.

We offer our heartfelt gratitude for the efforts and enthusiasm of and our Risk Trainers.

Shai Naseem, CPA, IRMCert
Nayasheen Naaif, IRMCert
Mohamed Nihal, IRMcert
Mohamed shihab, MBIS, ISACA, IIA

A hearty congratulations to our Director of Risk and Strategy, Shai Naseem for winning the Career Leadership Award in Business Management at the Professional and Career Women Awards 2024.

Organized by Women in Management - Maldives in partnership with International Finance Corporation - South Asia, the grand event held at Kurumba Maldives was attended by ministers, state dignitaries, foreign diplomats, industry leaders along with Dr. Rajini Sulochana Segera, Founder and Chairperson of Women in Management Global.

Winners were awarded after meticulous considerations of the nominees by a panel of highly qualified esteemed judges, both local and international.

A Certified Public Accountant (CPA Australia) and certified Enterprise Risk Management specialist, Shai was recognized for her contributions to good governance, strategically empowering organizations and individuals, as well as pioneering the implementation of ERM systems in key government institutions.

Apart from her role at our organization, she is the Co-founder and CEO of Achievia Consultancy, an Independent Board Director and Chairperson of the Audit Committee at Solarelle Insurance Pvt Ltd while perfectly executing her role as an attentive mother of 3 and a devoted wife.

Well deserved!! 👏👏

Celebrating Uz' Azmeen Rasheed, our Shariah and Legal Director, on being honored with the Gold Award for Rising Star of the Year 2024 at the 9th Islamic Finance Forum of South Asia.

We truly appreciate your determination and extend our deepest gratitude for your countless contributions and remarkable achievements to for our organization and the .

May Allah bless your endeavors and reward you for your noble efforts.

Alhamdhulillahi! On the 9th of November we marked our 9th Anniversary. We thank our investors, beneficiaries and every member of our team for our progressive successes.

Our journey began in 2015 with our registration with Ministry of Economic Development. Soon after, on March the 10th, 2016, we were granted our license from Capital Market Development Authority to become the very first licensed independent investment advisory in the Maldives.

The same year, we acquired the license for our Watercress Growth Fund, marking the first ever registered fund in the in the Maldives.

Over the years, we have consulted on various investments, provided trainings, managed assets and made successful investments towards real estate, venture capital and debt financing.

Our core focus remains on developing inclusive Islamic Finance in the Maldives and continuer to facilitate public and private financial institutions in developing their Islamic windows.

Thank you for your support!