Is it permissible to borrow with interest in order to grant interest-free loans to the needy without taking money from them?
It is not permissible to borrow with interest because it is usury (riba), and usury is one of the great major sins that is not permitted except in cases of necessity. The meaning of necessity is when a person reaches a point where if they do not consume the forbidden, they will perish or be close to perishing. This meaning is not present in everyone who needs a loan. Therefore, it is not permissible to borrow with usury under the pretext of the unavailability of a benevolent loan (qard hasan) or of using the money for benevolent lending, for a good objective cannot be achieved through forbidden means.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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