Some Islamic organizations believe that cryptocurrency can be likened to gambling, which makes it prohibited by Islam. One of the largest Islamic groups in Indonesia, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), agrees with this thought. The Fatwa that they issued showed that using crypto is an activity that is considered as Haram.
Before a Fatwa is issued, representatives from different Islamic organizations have to attend a forum called, “Bahtsul Masail”. After the discussion, the non-binding regulations that are gotten from the Islamic law are issued to Muslims.
Nahdlatul Ulama was one of those organizations that were in the forum when the Fatwa was reached.
A large population of Indonesian residents is Muslims, and some of them are into cryptocurrency. Over 6.5 million Indonesians bought and sold crypto within the country from January to May an article by KrAsia reports
“We have seen significant growth in the crypto economy. In just a few months, the number of traders has grown more than 50%,’ said trade minister Muhammad Lutfi during a webinar on Friday. The transaction volume grew by nearly 470%, from IDR 65 trillion (USD 4.4 billion) last year to IDR 370 trillion (USD 25 billion) in the first five months of 2021.”
The organization believes that the reason crypto is seen as Haram is because of its speculative nature, which can’t be legitimized under Islamic law.
