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Wholesale gold sold on credit

بيع الذهب بالجملة بالدين

A question about wholesale gold sold on credit, in which Jordan's General Iftaa Department answered that selling gold in instalments or for a deferred price is forbidden, that hand-to-hand exchange and equal weight are required, and that the way out is two separate cash contracts or a crafting fee. The Department answered that selling gold or silver in instalments or for a deferred price is forbidden and immediate mutual taking possession is required, otherwise it is riba, citing a hadith narrated by Muslim on the six commodities, whose meaning is that gold for gold, silver for silver and the rest are exchanged like for like and hand to hand, and that any increase is riba in which taker and giver are equal. It said that when new gold is exchanged for used gold, the weights must be equal, otherwise it falls into riba. It said the way out is for the trader to buy the used gold for money and then sell the new gold for money, with the price paid in the contract session in both contracts, or to take the used gold to re-craft or repair it and then charge a fee for the crafting or repair.

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Summary

A question about wholesale gold sold on credit, in which Jordan's General Iftaa Department answered that selling gold in instalments or for a deferred price is forbidden, that hand-to-hand exchange and equal weight are required, and that the way out is two separate cash contracts or a crafting fee. 1

The question

A wholesale gold trader who sells jewellery to retailers on credit asked about being repaid in instalments, in cash for the labour and, for the gold owed, in used gold or its market value. 1

The answer

The Department answered that selling gold or silver in instalments or for a deferred price is forbidden and immediate mutual taking possession is required, otherwise it is riba, citing a hadith narrated by Muslim on the six commodities, whose meaning is that gold for gold, silver for silver and the rest are exchanged like for like and hand to hand, and that any increase is riba in which taker and giver are equal. 1 It said that when new gold is exchanged for used gold, the weights must be equal, otherwise it falls into riba. 1 It said the way out is for the trader to buy the used gold for money and then sell the new gold for money, with the price paid in the contract session in both contracts, or to take the used gold to re-craft or repair it and then charge a fee for the crafting or repair. 1

About this record

Jordan's General Iftaa Department published this fatwa on aliftaa.jo as no. 4348, dated 16 March 2026. 1 The museum records this text as a historical document attributed to the body or scholar that issued it; it issues no ruling of its own.

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Currency exchange (sarf)· Riba in the rulings: the forbidden excess in exchange and in delay, its kinds, its causes and its rulings

People and things also explored

Buying gold bars through an app· Usury (riba)· A charity accepting a commercial bank's support in return for thanking it in posts· A loan whose interest is paid by another party· Administrative fees on an interest-free loan card· Arranged invoices to obtain cash from Islamic banks· Buying an online game account in instalments· Court-awarded legal interest

Sources

  1. Jordan's General Iftaa Department (aliftaa.jo) , fatwa 4348

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islam.museum contributors. “Wholesale gold sold on credit”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/work/fatwa-aliftaa-jo-wholesale-gold-sold-on-credit/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-01.

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Buying gold bars through an app

A question about buying gold bars through an app, in which Jordan's General Iftaa Department answered that trading gold through the app is permitted if possession is achieved by one of four recognised means and forbidden otherwise, and that reselling to the same dealer is acceptable when there was no prior agreement. The Department answered that Islam is strict about selling the commodities subject to riba, citing the hadith narrated by Muslim on the six commodities; gold exchanged for gold requires equal weight and possession in the session of the contract, while gold sold for currency requires only possession in the session. It listed the means by which possession of gold is achieved: the buyer takes the bar himself in the session; his agent takes it; the bar is designated by numbers and marks that distinguish it and the buyer is enabled to dispose of it; or it is held under certificates in licensed vaults governed by regulations, with the vault operator acting as agent for the certificate holder, referring to Shari'a Standard No. 57 for Islamic financial institutions. It said many speculative gold trades observe none of these controls; if possession occurs by one of the four means, trading is permitted, and if not, it is forbidden. On reselling the bar to the same dealer, it said the principle is to sell it to someone else to avoid the prohibited 'ina sale, but if this happens without any prior agreement or intention, there is no objection, provided the earlier conditions of sale are met.