What is the ruling on the personal financing offered by Al Ahli Bank, which involves purchasing a commodity (Indian rice) owned by the bank from Al Esaie Company in Jeddah?

There is no objection to purchasing a commodity in installments from a bank if the bank owns it, and then selling it to a third party after taking possession of it. This is called Tawarruq, and it is permissible according to the majority of scholars.

However, authorizing the bank (the seller) to sell the commodity makes it similar to 'inah (a type of buy-back sale), and the Islamic Fiqh Academy has issued a resolution prohibiting this transaction (organized banking Tawarruq), because there is usually no proper possession of the commodity in such cases.

Therefore, the client must take possession of the commodity themselves and sell it to a party other than the one from which it was obtained.