When was CrescentRating founded?

CrescentRating was founded in 2008 in Singapore by Fazal Bahardeen as the first global standard for Muslim-friendly travel. The organization codified what hospitality looks like when it is genuinely inclusive of Muslim travelers, with the same audit rigor applied to any global travel standard.

What is the Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI)?

The Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) is the industry's definitive benchmark for destinations serving the Muslim travel market. Co-published by CrescentRating and Mastercard since 2015, the 10th Anniversary edition was released in 2025 and covers 150+ destinations. GMTI is the world's most cited index for Muslim-friendly travel policy.

What is the ACES Framework?

ACES is CrescentRating's destination evaluation framework, deployed in 2017 as the new industry benchmark for assessing how well destinations serve Muslim travelers. Together with the RIDA Framework (2024) and TRUST Framework (2025), it forms the proprietary toolkit national tourism organizations use to benchmark national competitiveness in the Muslim travel market.

Who are CrescentRating's institutional partners?

CrescentRating partners with Mastercard (since 2014, co-publisher of the GMTI), UNHCR (co-released a landmark report on forced travel for women in 2019), national tourism organizations worldwide, and global hospitality groups. CrescentRating was admitted as an Affiliate Member of UN Tourism in 2025 and elected to the PATA Board in 2026.

Leadership Team · The Global Halal Authority since 2008

The team setting the global standard for Muslim-friendly travel.

CrescentRating's leadership has shaped the methodologies, the flagship index and the institutional partnerships that define this authority. They are accountable for the rigor of what we publish and the outcomes our partners deliver.

years as the Global Halal Authority

editions of GMTI delivered

countries with team presence

150+

destinations benchmarked annually

The leadership team

Built by experts who have shaped this authority from the start.

These are the leaders who carry CrescentRating's vision. Between them they own the research that produces GMTI, the partnerships with national tourism organizations and global brands, the platforms that operationalize accreditation, and the people function that holds the work together across global markets.

Meet The Leadership Team

Click any profile for a full biography, credentials, and direct routes for press, partnership and speaking inquiries.

Fazal Bahardeen

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Founded CrescentRating in 2008 and has shaped the Global Halal Authority for over a decade and a half.

SingaporeRead profile →

Raudha Zaini

Chief Operating Officer

Oversees CrescentRating's operations, strategic partnerships and the programs that translate GMTI insight into ground-level action.

SingaporeRead profile →

Farah Fauziah Arditami

Chief Marketing Officer

Leads CrescentRating and HalalTrip's marketing and communications — brand, content, social media, editorial and performance channels.

SingaporeRead profile →

Daniswara Nugroho

Chief Revenue Officer

Leads commercial strategy and the Halal in Travel Global Summit platform.

IndonesiaRead profile →

Aayesha Fazal

Chief Product Officer

Leads product strategy, experience design and the creative function across CrescentRating and HalalTrip.

SingaporeRead profile →

Tawfiq Salam Ikhtianto

Chief Research & Intelligence Officer

Owns the research agenda, data intelligence and capacity-building programs behind GMTI and CrescentRating Academy.

IndonesiaRead profile →

Muhammad Ananda Faris

Chief AI Officer

Leads AI strategy and technology across CrescentRating, overseeing platform development and the company's AI Committee.

IndonesiaRead profile →

The people behind the work

Our teams.

Five specialist verticals, each led by a member of the leadership council. Click a head's name to open their full profile.

4 people

Marketing & Communications

BrandMarketingEditorialSocial MediaCommunications

5 people

Business Development & Events

EventsPartnershipsBusiness DevelopmentRevenue

7 people

Product & Experience Design

Product DesignUXCreativeStakeholder Programs

6 people

Research, Data & Intelligence

GMTIData AnalyticsResearchIntelligence

5 people

AI & Technology

AIPlatform EngineeringProduct DesignInnovation

PCO

People, Culture & Operations

How leadership steers

Four principles. Applied to every engagement.

These are the operating commitments the leadership team holds the company to. They are why national tourism organizations and global brands continue to work with CrescentRating across multi-year programs.

Independence of methodology

Every framework — ACES, RIDA, the Accessible Travel Framework — is published, peer-reviewed inside the industry, and applied identically across destinations. The data does not bend to the audience.

Insight paired with execution

A scorecard or report is the start of an engagement, not the end. Leadership is held accountable for the operating model that follows it on the ground.

A single global standard

CrescentRating speaks the same language to a national tourism organization as it does to a single hotel, an airport, or a training cohort. One standard makes the industry comparable.

A long view of the segment

Muslim travel is not a campaign. The leadership team has led this authority for over fifteen years and continues to invest in research, capacity and platforms that compound.

On the world stage