Investment Apps in UAE: Sarwa, StashAway and Baraka Compared

UAE residents now have several regulated apps for investing directly from their phone, without needing a traditional broker or bank relationship manager. The three most commonly compared are Sarwa, StashAway and Baraka — but they're not interchangeable. Two are robo-advisors that manage a portfolio for you; one is a self-directed trading app. Here's how they actually differ.

Sarwa: robo-advisor and self-directed, in one app

Sarwa runs two separate products. Sarwa Invest is a robo-advisor: you answer a risk questionnaire, and it builds and automatically rebalances a diversified ETF portfolio for you, charging an annual management fee that scales from roughly 0.4% to 0.85% depending on how much you invest, with a $500 minimum. Sarwa Trade is a separate self-directed platform for buying individual US stocks and ETFs yourself. Sarwa was the first robo-advisor to graduate from the DFSA's regulatory sandbox and is regulated by the DFSA (via DIFC) and Abu Dhabi's FSRA. It also has the most developed Sharia-compliant portfolio of the three, built with an independent Sharia advisory board.

StashAway: pure robo-advisor, no minimum

StashAway is Singapore-based but operates in the UAE through DIFC under DFSA oversight. It's purely a robo-advisor — there's no self-directed trading option. Its portfolios are built around a proprietary risk-based asset allocation framework that adjusts exposure as market conditions change, and management fees range from about 0.2% to 0.8% a year depending on portfolio size, with no minimum deposit required. That makes it one of the more accessible starting points if you want a hands-off portfolio without committing a large lump sum upfront.

Baraka: self-directed stock trading, not a robo-advisor

Baraka is a different category of product entirely — a self-directed US stock and ETF trading app, not a robo-advisor. You pick your own positions rather than answering a risk questionnaire. It's DFSA-licensed, offers zero-commission US stock trading, and has a built-in Sharia-compliant filter covering over 1,500 halal-certified stocks and ETFs — useful if you want to build your own portfolio but only from Islamically permissible holdings. Baraka runs a tiered subscription model: a free Standard tier plus paid Premium and Premium+ tiers that unlock features like extended trading hours or lower FX conversion costs.

Which one fits which investor

If you want someone else to build and manage a diversified portfolio and don't want to think about rebalancing, a robo-advisor — Sarwa Invest or StashAway — is the more appropriate tool. Between the two, StashAway has no minimum and a slightly lower fee floor; Sarwa Invest has a $500 minimum but a more built-out halal portfolio option if that matters to you.

If you'd rather choose your own individual stocks and ETFs — say, buying specific US tech names or building a hand-picked halal portfolio — Baraka (or Sarwa Trade) is the better fit, since neither charges you an ongoing management fee for a service you're not really using.

Regulation and safety

All three are regulated in the UAE — Sarwa and StashAway through the DFSA (Sarwa also via ADGM's FSRA), Baraka through the DFSA as well. The UAE's Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) has also introduced federal licensing rules specifically for robo-advisory services operating in mainland UAE, adding governance requirements like independent IT audits and mandatory fee disclosure — a sign the regulatory framework around these apps is maturing, not something to worry about as a red flag.

What to check before signing up

Fees, minimums, and Sharia-compliance policies change as these platforms grow, so always check the current fee schedule directly in the app or on the provider's site before depositing — the ranges above are illustrative, not a locked-in quote. Also confirm which underlying custodian holds your assets (all three use regulated third-party custodians rather than holding client assets themselves), and understand that, as with any market investment, your balance can go down as well as up regardless of which app you use.