What is the ruling on a person importing and exporting a commodity by agreement with a company to open a letter of credit in its name for a fee, provided that he is given documents indicating that the transaction is fictitious, and is the exporter required to investigate how the importer opened the letter of credit?

A letter of credit is a financial facility granted by a bank to its importing clients to open credits in favor of exporters. It is not permissible to open a letter of credit by requesting a sum of money in exchange for opening it, because the bank's role in this transaction is a guarantee for the importer, and it is not permissible to pay money in exchange for a guarantee. The prohibition becomes even stronger if the credit is through an interest-based (usurious) bank and is not fully or partially covered, as the bank would then be lending with usurious interest. This would constitute aiding in usurious dealings, and Allah Almighty says: "And do not cooperate in sin and aggression. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty" (Quran 5:2).