Is it permissible to deposit money into a gold account or a gold fund?

- Does the decree on this issue change according to participation banks or interest-based banks?

Dear Brother / Sister,

It is permissible to buy and sell gold or foreign currency from an institution with the intention of making a profit without engaging in any interest-based transactions and with payments being made in cash.

If such transactions are conducted via internet banking, the following should be noted:

As long as payments are made cash in advance, buying gold online at the daily exchange rate and receiving delivery (meaning the amount is debited from the seller's account and credited to the buyer's account) and being able to withdraw the accumulated amount from the account when desired, there is no objection to buying and selling gold or foreign currency online under these conditions.

Furthermore, for such transactions to be permissible, it is necessary for the bank where the gold account is held to be able to physically deliver these gold reserves upon request from any of its branches.

In this case, there is no religious objection to depositing money into such gold accounts and engaging in daily trading.

Opening a virtual (nominal) gold account where physical delivery of gold is not possible is not permissible, and earning income through trading on such an account is not permissible either.

Moreover, if such a transaction is conducted with an institution that operates on the basis of interest, keeping money, gold, or foreign currency in their accounts, even if it is through trading, would mean supporting these interest-based institutions. Therefore, unless necessary, it is not appropriate to deposit money into interest-bearing accounts or accounts indexed to gold at interest-based banks.

Questions on Islam