Source: Excerpt from the book “Aḥkām wa Masāʾil: In the Light of the Qur’an and Sunnah” by Shaykh Mubashshir Ahmad Rabbānī ḥafiẓahullāh
❖ Question:
If I need to deposit money in a bank, which type of account should I open?
I am a government employee, and our salaries are credited via bank. So, which type of account should we use for depositing our money?
❖ Answer:
It is an undeniable fact that the banking system is based on interest (ribā). There are generally two types of bank accounts:
① Saving Account
② Current Account
❖ Ruling on Saving Account
A saving account is impermissible (ḥarām) because it is based on interest, involving the giving and taking of ribā — which is strictly prohibited in Islam.
❖ Qur’anic Evidence:
﴿ وَأَحَلَّ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ ٱلرِّبَىٰ ﴾
“Allah has permitted trade and prohibited interest.”
(Sūrah al-Baqarah 2:275)
Allah continues:
“Whoever receives this admonition from his Lord and refrains (from interest), what has passed is forgiven, and his matter is with Allah. But whoever returns to it – those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide therein forever.”
❖ Hadith of the Prophet ﷺ
Sayyidunā Jābir رضي الله عنه narrated that:
❝The Messenger of Allah ﷺ
❝They are all equal in sin.❞
This hadith makes it clear that not only taking and giving interest is sinful, but even writing it down or witnessing it brings equal curse and sin — solely because it is assisting and facilitating ribā.
❖ Ruling on Current Account
Though current accounts do not involve directly taking or giving interest, they still support the interest-based banking system, which makes one an accomplice in a forbidden transaction.
The Qur’an commands:
﴿ وَتَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْبِرِّ وَالتَّقْوَىٰ وَلَا تَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْإِثْمِ وَالْعُدْوَانِ ﴾
“And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and transgression.”
(Sūrah al-Mā’idah 5:2)
So reflect upon the hadith of Jābir once more:
The scribe and the witnesses were not involved in receiving or paying interest, yet the Prophet ﷺ cursed them equally — why?
Simply because they assisted in facilitating ribā.
❖ Practical Guidance for Salaried Employees
If your salary is transferred to a bank by necessity, then:
✔ You may receive it,
✖ But you should not leave it deposited unnecessarily in the bank.
✔ Withdraw it as soon as possible and do not use the account as a storage for your funds.
It is important for every believer to completely avoid any form of cooperation with interest-based systems, and to strive to distance themselves from the banking system as much as possible.
❖ Conclusion:
➤ Saving Accounts are clearly ḥarām due to involvement in ribā.
➤ Current Accounts, although interest-free, still constitute indirect support to an interest-based system and should be avoided unless necessary.
➤ If required by your employer (such as for salary transfers), only use it to receive the payment, and withdraw your funds promptly.
➤ Avoid storing or depositing your own savings in any conventional bank.
