Back in 2022, sheikh Jamaal al-Din Zarabozo wrote a paper analyzing the permissibility of Bitcoin/crypto
It’s a seminal work, but there’s one section that felt weirdly underdeveloped. I was honestly shocked when I first read it. He wrote:
"9.0.5 When One Believes that Current Monies are Ribawi (Interest-
Based), Evil, and Corrupt:
A Muslim could actually believe that Bitcoin/Cryptocurrency is more “halaal” than the current fiat money system. The individual may wish to have nothing to do with the current ribawi (interest-based system) and sees cryptocurrency as a halal alternative. One should recall that Bitcoin was actually developed in response to the financial crisis of 2007, when it became clear that many financial institutions were essentially corrupt and could not be trusted. In this case, the purchase of cryptocurrencies should be permissible."
In other words, he explicitly validates the view that today’s fiat system is ribawi and morally corrupt, and that a Muslim may use Bitcoin as a halal alternative to opt out of that system.
My argument takes the logic to its conclusion. If fiat is truly ribawi and Bitcoin is a viable exit, then this shifts from “permissible” to “obligatory” (wajib) under the duty to avoid riba as much as one is able.
Exploring that shift is the central theme of my book.
It’s a seminal work, but there’s one section that felt weirdly underdeveloped. I was honestly shocked when I first read it. He wrote:
"9.0.5 When One Believes that Current Monies are Ribawi (Interest-
Based), Evil, and Corrupt:
A Muslim could actually believe that Bitcoin/Cryptocurrency is more “halaal” than the current fiat money system. The individual may wish to have nothing to do with the current ribawi (interest-based system) and sees cryptocurrency as a halal alternative. One should recall that Bitcoin was actually developed in response to the financial crisis of 2007, when it became clear that many financial institutions were essentially corrupt and could not be trusted. In this case, the purchase of cryptocurrencies should be permissible."
In other words, he explicitly validates the view that today’s fiat system is ribawi and morally corrupt, and that a Muslim may use Bitcoin as a halal alternative to opt out of that system.
My argument takes the logic to its conclusion. If fiat is truly ribawi and Bitcoin is a viable exit, then this shifts from “permissible” to “obligatory” (wajib) under the duty to avoid riba as much as one is able.
Exploring that shift is the central theme of my book.
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