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1. Is it permissible to deposit money in a bank that deals with usury (riba)? 2. If someone has previously deposited their money in a usurious bank, is it permissible for them to withdraw the usurious (surplus) money, or should they leave it? 3. If this money is withdrawn, how can one dispose of it? And is the final beneficiary of this money sinful if they know it is usury? 4. Is it permissible to read the book Nahj al-Balagha?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

It is not permissible to deposit money in an interest-bearing bank unless there is an urgent necessity. If an interest-based increase results from this, it is permissible to take it and spend it on charitable causes and for the benefit of Muslims, not as an act of drawing closer to Allah, but to get rid of it. As for the final beneficiaries of this money, such as the poor and the needy, there is no harm upon them in taking it, even if they know it is from usury; because the warning does not apply to them, and this money has no owner, and it is not usury for them.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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