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Title
Partnering with a Finance Software
Question
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Can I partner with finance software that has credit card attached? The partnership will be that if I bring them customers I get paid from credit card transaction fees (not the interest/late fees on the credit card).

Answer
الجواب حامدا ومصليا

We are not fully clear as to how your partnership runs and what exactly it entails. However, we assume the following two scenarios:

  1. You are partnering with a finance software, which entails taking customer payments via a payment processing system. This agreement provides you with compensation either as a fixed fee or a percentage-based commission for each customer served by the payment processor.

    This agreement can be considered as juʿāla.[1] The basic form of juʿāla is that a person puts out a call for a service to be fulfilled, and anyone who does so will receive the predetermined payment. In your case, the finance software puts out a call for bringing in customers in return for a fixed or percentage-based pay. This form of agreement is permissible.
  2. You are partnering with a finance software for which you bring customers, and, in turn, you are paid. This can also be considered as a juʿāla, and it will be permissible.

And Allah knows best. 

Mf. Farhan ul Haq
Assistant Mufti, Darul Iftaa Chicago

Checked and Approved:

Mf. Abrar Mirza
Head Mufti, Darul Iftaa Chicago


[1] Shariah Standard No. 15, Juʿalah (Revised Standard) Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions. May 3-8, 2003. Pg. 439.

July 5, 2024 Finance