Three Reasons Why MUI Issues Fatwa That Crypto Is Haram As Currency

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JAKARTA - The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) officially forbids the use of cryptocurrencies or crypto money as currency. The decision was taken at the Ijtima Ulama Forum which was held today.

MUI chairman Asrorun Niam Soleh explained that the decision was taken for a number of reasons. At least, there are three legal dictums that explain that cryptocurrencies are forbidden as currency.

First, said Niam, the results of the deliberations determined that the use of cryptocurrencies was haram as currency because it contained gharar, dharar and was contrary to Law number 7 of 2011 and Bank Indonesia Regulation number 17 of 2015.

Second, cryptocurrencies or crypto money as commodities or digital assets are also illegal to trade because they contain gharar, dharar and qimar.

"And it does not meet the sil'ah requirements according to syar'i, namely there is a physical form, has value, the amount is known with certainty, property rights and can be handed over to the buyer," he said, in Jakarta, Thursday, November 11.

However, said Niam, for the type of commodity as a commodity or asset that meets the requirements as sil'ah and has clear benefits, it is legal to be traded.

"Third, cryptocurrency as a commodity or asset that qualifies as sil'ah and has an underlying and has clear benefits that it is legally valid to be traded," he said.

For your information, until now the Indonesian government does not recognize crypto as a means of payment as an alternative to using rupiah.

Even so, crypto trading is regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency (CoFTRA) of the Ministry of Trade in CoFTRA Regulation Number 2 of 2019 concerning the implementation of physical commodity markets on futures exchanges.

As it is known, the investment in crypto assets is increasingly loved by millennials. This is shown by the increasing number of officially registered crypto exchange transactions in Indonesia.

Based on data from the Ministry of Trade in July 2021, the number of crypto users in Indonesia is 7.4 million people. This figure has doubled in a year with the transaction value also increasing significantly.