Comments on: Banking: Islam waits

By: bilal

bilal — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:06:38 +0000

I think the the meaning of this post might be overlooked due to lack of knowledge or in formation about finance and banking.
Some valuable information;

http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2009/06/2009624121059292378.html

Read also the author’s article’ un the same window

By: bilal

bilal — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 18:08:36 +0000

Br Adelfos,

What was Bretton Woods?
Back to a gold based monetary system(but with no US dollar as refferal currency) perfectly matches Islamic finance.
But we are condemned all the others to feed the FED ,to support the $ ,buying US state bonds.
Poor Chinamerica.

By: Xenia

Xenia — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:57:24 +0000

For information only this is an example of the certificates the Bank of Britain financial products have:
http://www.islamic-bank.com/islamicbanklive/ShariaaCompliance/1/Home/1/Home.jsp;jsessionid=C7D052D57CD9FD999AF8D95FCD6F92D6

At least we have to try.Insha Allah

Xenia

By: Brother Adelfos

Brother Adelfos — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 15:14:02 +0000

Assalamu alaikom,

Masha’Allah! Sister Xenia, may Allah bless you!

Very important comment.

If anyone has some extra money to buy gold and/or silver, please do so.

It is said, the world is moving toward the “electronic” money, which is even worse than the current worthless paper notes in our hands.

Truly, the only thing that would be of value then (and even now) is gold and silver.

By: Xenia

Xenia — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 04:38:08 +0000

I thought I will also add:
Abu Bakr ibn Abi Maryam reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say: “A time is certainly coming over mankind in which there will be nothing [left] which will be of use save a dinar and a dirham.”
(The Musnad of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal)

With the financial Banking crisis we can see how the words of our Prophet PBUH are coming true.

Gold and silver are the most stable currency the world has ever seen

From the beginning of Islam until today, the value of the Islamic bimetallic currency has remained surprisingly stable in relation to basic consumable goods:

A chicken at the time of the Prophet, salla’llahu alaihi wa sallam, cost one dirham; today, 1,400 years later, a chicken costs approximately one dirham.

In 1,400 years inflation is zero.

Could we say the same about the dollar or any other paper currency in the last 25 years?

In the long term the bimetallic currency has proved to be the most stable currency the world has ever seen. It has survived, despite all the attempts by governments to transform it into a symbolic currency by imposing a nominal value different from its weight.

Reliability

Gold cannot be inflated by printing more of it; it cannot be devalued by government decree, and unlike paper currency it is an asset which does not depend upon anybody’s promise to pay.

Portability and anonymity of gold are both important, but the most significant fact is that gold is an asset that is no-one else´s liability.

All forms of paper assets: bonds, shares, and even bank deposits, are promises to repay money borrowed. Their value is dependent upon the investor’s belief that the promise will be fulfilled. As junk bonds and the Mexican peso have illustrated, a questionable promise soon loses value.

Gold is not like this. A piece of gold is independent of the financial system, and its worth is underwritten by 5,000 years of human experience.

And Allah SWT knows best.

Wa salaam
Xenia

By: Xenia

Xenia — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 04:14:58 +0000

Asalamu Alaykum Br Adelfos and all.
I agree that now more and more Western Banks have started offering financial products that they claim they have been endorsed and approved by The Sharia.
In my mind this move would be more for profit and competition with the other Islamic Banks. As Muslims how do we stand if we were to take such product from a Western Bank? They seem to have all the right certificates and stamps in the right places. I personally would use due dilligence. I would ask more questions and take it from there.
We have to be realistic though about the Islamic Bank Financial products. They are not perfect and there is room for improvement. But at least as Muslims we should consider this option as an acceptable for the time being alternative. I personally have found that some of their financial products ,work out far too expensive like their Islamic Mortgages( Brackets as I am not sure….???). For that The Bank purchases your chosen property and each month you pay them back part of the loan plus RENTAL until you pay off the original borrowed capital. Now some say that this Rental is Riba in disguise. Allahu Allam. And their Home Insurance and Car insurance products work out three times more expensive. I have spoken with Muslims in my line of job and I have been told: ” We want to take out a Halal ……. (product) but we can not afford it. I think Islamic Banks should concentrate in making their products more affordable and as Sharia compliant as possible. I think the Western Banks are not presenting as ” Islamic Banks” but they are presenting some of their products as Islamic and they like to use the word Halal Finance. As with all matters if in doubt is better to leave it. And Allah knows best.

By: ImanK

ImanK — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 01:18:55 +0000

Also, another thing. When I was explaining the no riba banking system to non-Muslims many years ago, they basically laughed like it’s a ridiculous idea because no one becomes rich without riba. Now, I see it ironically funny that the state of the economy is like this because of riba.

Allah will deprive riba of all blessing, and will give increase for deeds of charity…” (2:276)

By: ImanK

ImanK — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 01:13:27 +0000

And a quick note about the words usury and riba. From what I recall, usury is a lot of interest and does not include a little bit of interest made on money so when some non-Muslims saw the translation of the word “riba” to be “usury” this is what they thought it meant until I explained that the translation of riba is any interest made on money even if it is only 1%.

By: Brother Adelfos

Brother Adelfos — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:42:54 +0000

Assalamu alaikom wa rahmatu’llahi wa barakatuh,

Thank you for posting this interesting article.

Nevertheless, I caution everyone from getting over-excited about “Islamic banking” or “Islamic financing”.

According to Sheikh Imran Hosein, who’s apparantly an expert when it comes to these matters (Wa’llahu aalam), most of the “Islamic” banks out there are actually practicing a policy of what he calls “riba through the backdoor”!

He believes that it is not to the interest of the Western financial world that is controlled by the filthy rich that a riba-free economy should exist.

Therefore, the West will fight such economies/banking systems either directly or indirectly (presenting riba-dealing banks as “Islamic banks”).

I hope I haven’t misunderstood or misrepresented the sheikh’s words; but his lectures are out there (on the net) for anyone who cares to listen.

Wa’ssalamu alaikom wa rahmatu’llahi wa barakatuh,

By: Islamic banking | Greeks Rethink « Offshore loans, banks, money

Islamic banking | Greeks Rethink « Offshore loans, banks, money — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:39:50 +0000

[...] Islamic banking | Greeks Rethink As the Anglo-Saxon ex-masters of the financial universe struggle to emerge from a perfect storm of bad loans , bad bets and a deep recession, an alternative approach to business transactions is having a moment in the sun: Islamic finance, … Read more here: Islamic banking | Greeks Rethink [...]