What is the ruling on money taken from a special work fund, the assets of which are deposited in a bank with interest, and what is the ruling on the interest accrued from this money when deposited in another bank with interest? What are the available solutions for obtaining a permissible income from this money without diminishing it over time? Are there banks that provide income while allowing the withdrawal of funds when needed?
It is not permissible to deposit money in an investment or savings account in a usurious bank, because it is a forbidden usurious loan. One must repent and withdraw the money or place it in a current account for safekeeping only. The usurious profits that were spent previously do not require compensation. As for the profits that are still in hand, it is permissible to benefit from what came from them before knowing of their prohibition, and what came from them after knowing of their prohibition must be disposed of by giving it to the poor. Zakat is obligatory on the principal amount if it reaches the nisab (threshold) and a hawl (lunar year) has passed over it. It is permissible to invest money in banks according to a mudarabah (profit-sharing) contract with conditions: no guarantee of the principal, the interest being a known percentage of the profit and not the principal, and the field of investment being permissible. It is not permissible to invest in a bank that deals with usurious bonds, even if it claims to be Islamic.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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