Is Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) Halal?
Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) · DRAM
DRAM — the Roundhill Memory ETF, launched April 2, 2026 and one of the fastest-growing fund launches ever — is not Shariah-compliant. The problem is structure, not sector. Memory-chip manufacturing is a permissible business, but DRAM is an actively managed fund that takes part of its exposure through total-return swaps and at times leverage, holds collateral that earns interest, and applies no Shariah screening to its nine-odd holdings. Swap-based exposure means the fund profits from price movements of shares it does not own — a structure scholars reject independent of what the underlying companies do. Muslims wanting the memory/AI-infrastructure theme should hold individually screened chip stocks directly instead.
Screening basis: AAOIFI Shariah standards · Last reviewed 2026-07-20
HalalWallet is not a Shariah authority and does not issue religious rulings. We compile the most complete public record of what Shariah scholars, screening authorities, and mainstream standards say — reproduced from primary sources with dates and citations — and let you decide.
Do the halal screening authorities agree?
- HalalWallet (AAOIFI)· Not halal
HalalWallet (AAOIFI) rates Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) not halal; no other recognized authority has a published position.
Stances are normalized from each authority's own dated public position. Disagreement usually reflects a methodology or standard difference (ratio timing, market-cap vs total-assets denominator), not an error. For the fund screens (Wahed/HLAL, SP Funds/SPUS), only a confirmed holding that passed the fund's screen counts as a pass — a non-holding is left blank because absence can reflect index scope.
Is Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) Halal?
DRAM — the Roundhill Memory ETF, launched April 2, 2026 and one of the fastest-growing fund launches ever — is not Shariah-compliant. The problem is structure, not sector. Memory-chip manufacturing is a permissible business, but DRAM is an actively managed fund that takes part of its exposure through total-return swaps and at times leverage, holds collateral that earns interest, and applies no Shariah screening to its nine-odd holdings. Swap-based exposure means the fund profits from price movements of shares it does not own — a structure scholars reject independent of what the underlying companies do. Muslims wanting the memory/AI-infrastructure theme should hold individually screened chip stocks directly instead.
How we read the evidence
HalalWallet's editorial synthesis of the screens, scholar positions, and sources documented on this page — not a religious ruling.
DRAM is the breakout fund story of 2026: launched April 2 as the first memory-sector ETF, it rode the AI infrastructure boom to more than $20 billion in assets within three months — one of the fastest ETF launches on record — and more than doubled before pulling back. Its pitch is precision: not semiconductors broadly, but the memory layer specifically — DRAM chips, high-bandwidth memory (HBM), and NAND flash — where AI demand has collided with constrained supply. Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix make up roughly 73% of the fund. Muslim investors caught in the AI-investing wave are asking whether this one is permissible, and the answer is a clear no — for reasons worth understanding because they generalize.
The sector is not the problem. Manufacturing memory chips is a permissible business, and some memory names may individually clear AAOIFI's financial screens depending on where their debt and interest-income ratios stand in a capital-intensive cycle. If DRAM were simply an unscreened basket of chip stocks, this verdict would read like our VGT verdict: not halal for want of screening, with direct ownership of passing names as the fix.
DRAM fails at a deeper level: how it holds what it holds. The fund is actively managed and takes a meaningful part of its exposure through total return swaps — contracts where a counterparty pays the fund the return of a stock in exchange for a fee, without the fund owning the shares. Roundhill does this partly for tax efficiency on foreign names like Samsung and SK Hynix, and the fund has at times run modest leverage through these positions. Under AAOIFI standards, swaps are impermissible instruments: they are the exchange of cash flows referencing assets neither side owns, with an interest-based financing charge embedded in the swap fee — gharar and riba in one wrapper. A fund built on them is non-compliant no matter how halal the referenced companies are. Add unscreened holdings and interest earned on swap collateral, and there is no reading under which the wrapper passes. The same logic disposes of RAM, the 2x leveraged sibling launched in June — leveraged daily-reset derivatives are further from compliance, not closer.
The honest guidance for a Muslim who wants this theme: buy the theme's companies, not this fund. The memory trade is so concentrated that direct positions in the screened names replicate most of the fund's behavior — verify each ticker with a current screener check (Zoya, Musaffa), since ratios in this sector move with the capex cycle. For the broader AI build-out, screened funds like HLAL and SPUS already carry heavy weights in the passing mega-cap tech names. What the screens are protecting you from here is not the chips — it is the machinery of swaps, leverage, and interest that the fund uses to hold them.
Business Activity Screen
Actively managed thematic ETF (0.65% expense ratio) targeting semiconductor-memory companies — DRAM, high-bandwidth memory (HBM), NAND flash — with ~9 underlying names; Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix are ~73% of exposure. Launched April 2, 2026; crossed $20B AUM within three months.
Underlying companies are largely permissible businesses, but the fund gains part of its exposure via total return swaps and occasional leverage rather than share ownership, earns interest on swap collateral, and applies no Shariah screen. The structure fails independent of the holdings.
Scholars' & Screeners' Positions
Published positions, cited as stated. Screeners can reach different conclusions on the same company because of ratio timing and methodology differences — we report the disagreement rather than flatten it.
AAOIFI position on derivatives-based funds
Total return swaps and similar derivatives are impermissible instruments: they trade cash flows referencing assets neither party owns, combining gharar with interest-based financing embedded in the swap fee. A fund that builds exposure through swaps is non-compliant even where the referenced stocks would individually pass screening.
On the underlying sector
Semiconductor manufacturing is a permissible activity, and several memory-sector companies may individually pass AAOIFI screens depending on current debt and interest-income ratios. The compliant route to the theme is direct ownership of screened stocks, verified against current ratios with a halal screener — not an unscreened swap-wrapped fund.
What to do instead
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The Final Step: Your Scholar Conversation
Major whether Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) is halal decisions involve nuances that vary by scholarly opinion and personal circumstance — which is why HalalWallet is built as the research step, not the ruling. We do the homework on comparisons, structures, and oversight; a qualified Islamic scholar, your local imam, or a Shariah-certified financial advisor covers what no comparison site can — guidance specific to your situation. Bring your shortlist to that conversation so it starts at the decision, not the basics.
How to use this comparison: HalalWallet is an independent educational comparison platform — by design, we do not provide financial, legal, or religious advice. We do the research homework so your final checks are quick and personal.
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- Confirm current terms and halal compliance directly with the provider — their quote is final.
- Review the contract structure (Murabaha, Ijara, Musharakah, etc.) and any disclosed Shariah board opinions.
- Bring your shortlist to a qualified Islamic finance advisor or scholar, so the conversation is about your situation, not the basics.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources and review process
This page is reviewed against HalalWallet editorial standards and source documentation.
Reviewed by: HalalWallet Editorial Team
Last reviewed: 2026-07-01
- Roundhill — DRAM Memory ETF (fund page and prospectus)
- AAOIFI Shariah Standards
- HalalWallet Methodology
- Halal Stock Screening Methodology (AAOIFI)
- HalalWallet Editorial Policy
- Is It Halal? — Quick Reference Hub
- HalalWallet Methodology
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