Question Summary:
Reliability of a bank in the UAE

Question Detail:

 
I am looking to go islamic car financing through renowned Islamic Bacnk in UAE. Chairman of the Shariah Board is Mufti Taqi Usmani Db. Bank is offering both Ijarah & Murabah car financing offerings.
I spoke to one deoband scholar he said: "Where mufti Taqi usmani is handling the shariah issues in bank, backend transcations are purely islamic" Please guide me Shall I go for such car financing solution?
If they are shariah compliant, what is the assurance the transactions are pure at the backend? May be bank is playing with the words rather mentioning interest on contract they mention profit.

Answer :

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
Your desire for engaging in transactions that are totally Shar’iah compliant is highly commendable. You wish to inquire regarding the transactions that go on behind the scenes of an Islamic bank. Having no direct link with or any knowledge regarding the bank you refer to, we are unable to state whether the transactions of the bank are completely in line with Shari’ah. However, if you are certain that Hadrat Mufti Taqi Damat Barakaatuhu is the head of the Shari’ah board and are satisfied with the information provided to you, you may undertake the car finance facility.
Whilst we are in no position to comment on the transactions that go on behind the scenes, we assure you that Mufti Taqi Sahib Damat Barakaatuhu is highly learned and experienced in the field of Islamic Finance and also a scholar of great piety and Taqwa. It is unlikely that a bank under his Shari’ah supervision would carry out non-Shari’ah compliant transactions behind the scenes. However, many banks providing Islamic Finance falsely use names of some scholars to promote themselves. Therefore, do ensure that Mufti Taqi Sahib has approved the bank and his name is not being used just to promote the bank.
 
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Nabeel Valli
Student Darul Iftaa
Lusaka, Zambia
Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.
www.daruliftaa.net