INTERVIEW � Boycat founder pushes for global ethical economy rooted in Islamic values
Boycat, which started off as a boycott tracker in support of the Palestinian cause, is evolving into a platform to help build an independent, ethical economy led by Muslim communities
Boycat Founder Adil Abbuthalha
- ‘We need to create products as Muslims ... for humanity and showcase that with Islam and with our teachings, it’s meant for everyone,’ says Abbuthalha
LONDON
When Adil Abbuthalha first set out to create Boycat, it was a simple personal project – a tool to help individuals learn how to boycott companies complicit in Israel’s oppression of Palestinians.
But it quickly grew into something far larger: a mission to reimagine the global economy through an ethical framework inspired by Islamic values, aimed at building self-sustaining economic infrastructures within Muslim communities worldwide.
“It started as an individual project to help you learn how to boycott and help us in Palestine,” Abbuthalha explained on the sidelines of Muslim Tech Fest, an event recently held in London where Anadolu served as the global communication partner.
“The second step was, how do we make the alternative ecosystem that allows us to create products, brands, communities and so on, from there to expand that into our own system, because we don't need to rely on the other systems.”
This alternative ecosystem, though still in its early stages, has now become the driving vision behind Boycat.
With over 2.5 million users globally, Boycat has expanded far beyond its initial boycott-tracking function. Boosted by grassroots campaigns, community events, and word-of-mouth, it has transformed into an influential platform designed to empower Muslim consumers and ethical shoppers around the world.
Abbuthalha believes the project has positioned Muslims to play a significant role in the digital economy, ensuring they have influence in critical economic and social decisions.
“We can have a seat at the table where decisions are made about a digital economy,” Abbuthalha told Anadolu. “The goal is to create social impact – first help those in Palestine and expand past Palestine, go into things like the Uyghurs, going into things like Congo, Sudan, Bosnia, and then even into non-Muslim issues.”
Abbuthalha emphasizes that the vision of Boycat transcends religious boundaries. For him, it is not about creating exclusively Muslim products, but rather about creating products as Muslims for all of humanity.
“My goal isn’t to create a Muslim product. I think we have enough of those. We need to create products as Muslims, and so that means we create products for humanity and showcase that with Islam and with our teachings, it’s meant for everyone. It’s not meant just for Muslims, not just meant for Arabs,” he explained.
‘They tried to shut us down, then tried to buy us out’
However, Boycat’s growth and visibility have not come without significant challenges and threats.
Abbuthalha described numerous attempts to silence and sabotage the platform. Initially, it was internally shut down by Google, only to be reinstated after a friend within the company escalated the issue to the trust and safety team. More disturbingly, Abbuthalha received several aggressive buy-out offers from Israeli interests aiming to shut Boycat down completely.
“This past February, Israel launched a $150 million hasbara fund, and they sent us four offer letters to buy out our company and shut us down,” Abbuthalha recalled.
“I had a lawyer look into one of them. We were offered $12 million and then I had to move to Tel Aviv for two years as well, and I turned it down.
“They first tried to shut us down from outside, and then tried to shut us down from inside … I get death threats almost every week,” he added.
Abbuthalha’s commitment has come at personal cost, including losing his job after employers discovered his work on the platform.
Yet, Boycat has already demonstrated its tangible impact, managing to move around $90 million in the past year away from Israeli-supporting companies.
Despite these successes, Abbuthalha acknowledges skepticism within parts of the Muslim community, many of whom fear backlash for openly supporting ethical initiatives.
“Muslims, they want support, but they’re scared. They feel like, if we support this, they’ll lose their job, they’ll lose everything,” Abbuthalha noted.
Building a certified, global ethical economy
Hurdles aside, Boycat is pushing ahead with its next phase: the creation of a certified, global network of ethical, community-rooted businesses. The platform intends to provide these businesses with greater visibility, distribution, and fulfillment support.
“The first step was to provide information. The next step is probably the alternative ecosystem ... We want to get and find alternative products that we can showcase, build … and platform them to our millions of people,” Abbuthalha said.
“Because it’s easy to avoid something when you know what you can use instead, especially when it’s built by our own community.”
Abbuthalha envisions Muslims taking a leading role in ethical consumerism and broader social issues.
“Muslims should be at the forefront of ethical consumerism as a whole. We need to talk about sustainability, climate change, animal cruelty and so on,” he stressed.
Over the past year, Abbuthalha’s journey has taken him to more than 30 countries, connecting with Muslim communities from Indonesia to the UK. These relationships have laid the groundwork for a new economic system built on self-sustaining, ethically driven community networks.
“I’m connected to probably 40, 50 global Muslim populations in different countries. All I have to do is connect them and showcase the local products they have, and connect the distribution channels among them,” he explained. “Now you don’t have to rely on the old system. You can rely on this new system.”
Ultimately, for Abbuthalha, the creation of a new system starts from individuals, expands to communities, and then transforms into self-sufficient infrastructure.
As for when this ambitious new system could be ready, he said: “It’s happening over the next year or so.”
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