With the increasing demand for Bitcoin and its price increasing by sixfold since the beginning of the year, all sorts of questions are now being raised about the digital. Latest of them is whether it is ‘Halal’ or not.
Madina Kalimullina, adviser on Islamic Economics and Finance of the Russian Muftis Council has started a discussion on creating a ‘halal cryptocurrency’.
Kalimullina claimed that sharia law has not yet been developed for the usage of Bitcoin; whether it is permissible in Islam or not is yet to be decided. However, she is hopeful that within the next few years, the law will be formalised.
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Bitcoin, just like other virtual currencies, uses Blockchain technology to record transactions all over the world. Governments have not yet regulated the currency with its blockchain mechanism promising complete secrecy.
“As a payment network, Bitcoin is halal. In fact, Bitcoin goes beyond what more conventional closed banking networks offer,” adds Matthew J Martin of Blossom Finance, a fintech startup based in Indonesia.
If any other currency is "halal", why not bitcoin?