Is cryptocurrency halal or legal? Experts weigh in

The rise in cryptocurrency exchange and trade has triggered questions regarding its compatibility with Shariah guidelines as well as its legal status in the UAE.

- Haneen Dajani

As of now, the Shariah stance in the country is that cryptocurrencies are "neither halal nor haram" and are "not recommended". This comes even as cryptocurrency supporters termed Bitcoin the “most Islamic form of money ever invented” during a conference in Abu Dhabi recently as reported by Khaleej Times.

“Our current position is ‘tawaquf ’; we can’t say it is halal or haram, but we say it is better not to engage in it,” said a (hotline) scholar from the UAE Fatwa Council. “It is a complicated issue because there are various ways you can analyse crypto currently.”

There are concerns about the speculated nature of its current use, “because its prices fluctuate and at quite large amounts overnight, so people are just jumping on to it, perceiving it as an investment”.

“While some people have benefited a lot from it financially … there are other premises at stake, so we don’t recommend it yet.”

From the Fatwa Council’s perspective, it is not yet recognised as an official currency; however, the stance is subject to change if the government gives it official recognition, he added.

Supporters of cryptocurrencies argue that the Muslim world is “missing out” on the Bitcoin revolution.