Awqaf properties in Malaysia have evolved over the years from being in the nature of consumptive immoveable properties used for religious purposes like madrasahs and mosques into productive and mixed-use type real estate properties like hotels, office buildings and commercial type properties. The regulatory and legal frameworks have played a vital role in the evolution of waqf sector and its management through the State of Islamic Religious Councils (SIRCs), the Department of Waqf and Hajj (JAWHAR) and Yayasan Waqaf Malaysia (YWM). In fact, waqf in Malaysia operates under three separate laws, namely: Islamic Law, Federal Territory Act or State Enactments relating to administration of the Islamic Law, State Waqf Enactments. In addition, the 2007 national fatwa permitting cash waqf in Malaysia brought about diversification of awqaf properties through the introduction of several cash waqf schemes by local banks, federal agencies as well as State Islamic Religious Councils (SIRC). Further developments were seen with the development of the concept of "corporate waqf" and waqf shares as well as innovative awqaf products in the takaful sector and the Islamic capital market. Another significant development occurred in 2015 with the introduction of the Labuan International Waqf Foundation (LIWF) by the Labuan International Business and Financial Centre (LIBFC). Through qualitative research and content analysis, this paper traces these developments in Malaysia through the lenses of governance, reformation and transformation. The research also adopts the analytical method to evaluate the viability of waqf in the Malaysian context. Some of the issues that will be touched on are whether the regulatory framework for waqf in Malaysia has moved in tandem with these developments, innovative use of waqf for financial inclusion, as well as the online platforms to collect waqf funds.

The practice of waqf has existed in Malaysia since the coming of Islam to the Malay Archipelago in the 9th century (CE) (Arnold, 1913). The early awqaf properties were in the form of prayer rooms (surau), mosques, cemeteries and subsequently, madrasahs (Dahlan & Kamarudin, 2006). Mahamood divides the history of waqf in Malaysia into three phases, namely, pre-colonial Malaya, colonial Malaya and postindependence Malaya (Mahamood, 2006) but notes that there has not been much research done on the pre-colonial period in order to confirm the first awqaf properties in Malaya. Based on the premise that the earliest awqaf created were in the form of mosques, the earliest official mosque is said to be the Kg. Laut mosque in Kota Bharu, Kelantan that was built in 1676 CE (Mahamood, 2006). Nevertheless, recent research by historians, based on excavation of Lembah Bujang, an area in the northern state of Kedah in Peninsular Malaysia, has found traces of an old mosque dating back to the 9th century (Dahlan & Mohamad, 2018).