What is the ruling on one who buys currency to hold onto it until its price rises and then sells it?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh: Peace be upon you.
The questioner: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah.
The questioner : The Shaykh : Nasser.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : I.The Shaykh : Muhammad, I am speaking from Imam Ali Mosque. I want to ask you about a fatwa, O my master.The Shaykh
The Shaykh : Please go ahead.
The questioner : There are brothers who disagreed on this issue. I told them I would present this issue toThe Shaykh : Nasser. Some of them permitted it, and some forbade it, regarding currency. I bought Lebanese currency and kept it with me until it rose so that I could sell it. Then a man stood up and said, "This is forbidden," and another man stood up and said, "No, this is not forbidden; this is lawful, just as a man buys gold and sells it and profits from it." I told them, "I will present this issue to a man we know and consider to be of good character, though we do not certify his piety before Allah."
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good. This issue was just asked about from Saudi Arabia, and the answer, in brief, is that it is not permissible to trade in all paper currencies because it falls under the category of gambling. It is only permissible for a person to sell or buy what he has a pressing need for. For example, a man comes from Saudi Arabia to here with Saudi currency; he needs to buy goods from here, he needs to live, he needs to eat and drink, and so on. He is forced to convert his currency into Jordanian currency, and vice versa. If the Jordanian goes there, he is forced to exchange his Jordanian currency and replace it with Saudi currency, and so on. As for waiting, thinking that a certain currency will drop, and buying thousands of it and saving it with him, and then when he feels its price has risen, he puts it on the market and exchanges it for something else, and so on and so forth, that is gambling itself.
The questioner : I came with the brother Abu Hafs on Friday to ask you, but I saw you were busy, so I left and did not ask.
The Shaykh : Thank you, my brother.
The questioner: May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : And may Allah protect you, if Allah wills.
The questioner : I ask Allah to prolong your life and to prolong us in your knowledge, and may Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : And to you, and may Allah bless you.
The questioner : Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The questioner: Peace be upon you.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace and the mercy of Allah.
The questioner : The Shaykh : Nasser.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : I.The Shaykh : Muhammad, I am speaking from Imam Ali Mosque. I want to ask you about a fatwa, O my master.The Shaykh
The Shaykh : Please go ahead.
The questioner : There are brothers who disagreed on this issue. I told them I would present this issue toThe Shaykh : Nasser. Some of them permitted it, and some forbade it, regarding currency. I bought Lebanese currency and kept it with me until it rose so that I could sell it. Then a man stood up and said, "This is forbidden," and another man stood up and said, "No, this is not forbidden; this is lawful, just as a man buys gold and sells it and profits from it." I told them, "I will present this issue to a man we know and consider to be of good character, though we do not certify his piety before Allah."
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good. This issue was just asked about from Saudi Arabia, and the answer, in brief, is that it is not permissible to trade in all paper currencies because it falls under the category of gambling. It is only permissible for a person to sell or buy what he has a pressing need for. For example, a man comes from Saudi Arabia to here with Saudi currency; he needs to buy goods from here, he needs to live, he needs to eat and drink, and so on. He is forced to convert his currency into Jordanian currency, and vice versa. If the Jordanian goes there, he is forced to exchange his Jordanian currency and replace it with Saudi currency, and so on. As for waiting, thinking that a certain currency will drop, and buying thousands of it and saving it with him, and then when he feels its price has risen, he puts it on the market and exchanges it for something else, and so on and so forth, that is gambling itself.
The questioner : I came with the brother Abu Hafs on Friday to ask you, but I saw you were busy, so I left and did not ask.
The Shaykh : Thank you, my brother.
The questioner: May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : And may Allah protect you, if Allah wills.
The questioner : I ask Allah to prolong your life and to prolong us in your knowledge, and may Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : And to you, and may Allah bless you.
The questioner : Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.