Ruling on depositing money in interest-based banks without interest
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Question:
Our brother says: I have an account in one of the banks without interest, knowing that the banks deal in interest. Do my monies fall under the ruling of riba?
The Shaykh: Repeat.
The presenter: He says: I have an account in one of the banks without interest, knowing that the banks deal in interest. Do my monies fall under the ruling of riba? Is there a sin on me? Should I withdraw my balance from the banks? Knowing that I fear their loss.
Answer:
There is no blame on you in depositing your money in the banks out of fear for it, and this is a matter of dire necessity. So if you need to do that, there is no blame without interest. However, if it is easy to deposit it in Islamic banks, encourage the Islamic banks and assist them in their mission; for that is more preferable and more deserving. Islamic banks must be encouraged and must be supported. If they make a slip or a mistake, point out their mistake and correct their errors; so that they can compete with interest-based banks, and so that Muslims can substitute them for interest-based banks. You can deposit it in Islamic banks and take a lawful profit in the transaction through mudarabah. As for a fixed interest, such as ten percent or five percent; this is not permissible, neither in Islamic banks nor in interest-based banks. It is prohibited in all circumstances. No one is allowed to take a fixed interest, neither in an Islamic bank, nor from a specific merchant, nor in an interest-based bank, nor otherwise. Fixed interests, such as paying an Islamic bank, or an interest-based bank, or a specific merchant: one hundred thousand, on the condition that they give you a fixed interest every month or every year, ten percent, five percent; this is not permissible. This is riba.
But Islamic banks can dispose of the money through Islamic means, mudarabah, and buying necessities to sell them for a profit, and they collect the profits and give the owner of the money his share of the profit that they agreed upon, which is, for example, half the profit, one-third of the profit, one-fifth of the profit, according to what the Islamic banks agreed upon with the owner of the money.
So the result is: there is no blame in depositing money in interest-based banks without interest out of dire necessity and fear for it. But if you find an alternative to that, by depositing your money with a merchant where there is no risk, or with Islamic banks without interest, or on the condition that the Islamic banks work with the lawful transaction and lawful murabahah, all of this is obligatory upon you; so that you do not encourage riba and the people of riba. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good and benefit through you.
Our brother says: I have an account in one of the banks without interest, knowing that the banks deal in interest. Do my monies fall under the ruling of riba?
The Shaykh: Repeat.
The presenter: He says: I have an account in one of the banks without interest, knowing that the banks deal in interest. Do my monies fall under the ruling of riba? Is there a sin on me? Should I withdraw my balance from the banks? Knowing that I fear their loss.
Answer:
There is no blame on you in depositing your money in the banks out of fear for it, and this is a matter of dire necessity. So if you need to do that, there is no blame without interest. However, if it is easy to deposit it in Islamic banks, encourage the Islamic banks and assist them in their mission; for that is more preferable and more deserving. Islamic banks must be encouraged and must be supported. If they make a slip or a mistake, point out their mistake and correct their errors; so that they can compete with interest-based banks, and so that Muslims can substitute them for interest-based banks. You can deposit it in Islamic banks and take a lawful profit in the transaction through mudarabah. As for a fixed interest, such as ten percent or five percent; this is not permissible, neither in Islamic banks nor in interest-based banks. It is prohibited in all circumstances. No one is allowed to take a fixed interest, neither in an Islamic bank, nor from a specific merchant, nor in an interest-based bank, nor otherwise. Fixed interests, such as paying an Islamic bank, or an interest-based bank, or a specific merchant: one hundred thousand, on the condition that they give you a fixed interest every month or every year, ten percent, five percent; this is not permissible. This is riba.
But Islamic banks can dispose of the money through Islamic means, mudarabah, and buying necessities to sell them for a profit, and they collect the profits and give the owner of the money his share of the profit that they agreed upon, which is, for example, half the profit, one-third of the profit, one-fifth of the profit, according to what the Islamic banks agreed upon with the owner of the money.
So the result is: there is no blame in depositing money in interest-based banks without interest out of dire necessity and fear for it. But if you find an alternative to that, by depositing your money with a merchant where there is no risk, or with Islamic banks without interest, or on the condition that the Islamic banks work with the lawful transaction and lawful murabahah, all of this is obligatory upon you; so that you do not encourage riba and the people of riba. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good and benefit through you.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.