Is an increase of two riyals considered permissible if a company transfers 100 riyals via Visa to another company, and the other company returns 98 riyals in cash to the transferring company?

Exchanging money for money (currency exchange) requires equality and immediate possession (qabd) in the same session if the currencies are the same, based on the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "Gold for gold, like for like, equal for equal, hand to hand."

Monetary currencies have the same rulings as gold and silver regarding usury (riba) and zakat. So, if 100 Riyals were transferred to someone's account, and he gave 98 Riyals in the same session, this is prohibited riba al-fadl (usury of surplus) due to the lack of equality, despite the immediate possession.

If the currencies differ (e.g., Riyal and Dollar), only immediate possession is required, based on the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "If these types differ, then sell as you wish, provided it is hand to hand."

Immediate possession is only achieved when the money enters the account in the same session; otherwise, it is riba an-nasi'ah (usury of delay). If the cardholder cannot withdraw the money due to a lack of liquidity, selling this debt to a third party for less than its value is impermissible due to the absence of immediate possession. However, it is permissible to sell it for a commodity or a service.