Controlling fatwa would harm Islamic finance
Recent developments in the Islamic finance market prompted the industry to rethink the role of Shariah scholars.
Most Islamic financial institutions appoint a supervisory board or committee of religious scholars who are tasked with reviewing their transactions in order to ensure that they comply with the principles of Islamic Shariah in their business and financial dealings.
A Shariah supervisory board or committee approves or rejects a transaction through the issuance of a fatwa.
The question of the day in the Islamic finance industry is whether Shariah scholars should be subject to some sort of supervision themselves.
In our opinion, the answer to this question depends on what is meant by ‘supervision’.
Industry practitioners should oppose supervision if it means that Shariah scholars would have to adhere to strict criteria or methodology before issuing a fatwa.
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