Fatwa: # 22218
Category: Financial Transactions
Country: Germany
Date: 3rd September 2012

Title

Is it permissible to grade coins or is it gambling?

Question

Is it permissible to grade coins or is it gambling?

Answer

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

Coin grading is defined as “The process of determining the grade or condition of a coin, one of the key factors in determining its value as a collector's item. The grading of a coin includes the analysis of several criteria, the most important being the quality, the rarity, the interest factor, and the liquidity factor.”[1]

A grade is defined as "A shorthand devised by numismatists[2] to indicate the appearance of a coin. In other words, if one collector tells another that he has an About Uncirculated-50 Charlotte half eagle; both collectors should have an expectation of what the coin should look like, even if one has never seen it, due to the implications of its grade.”[3]

Every profession has a defined set of rules and codifications. Similarly, it is important that one applies the correct grading system such as the Sheldon Grading System, European Grading System, etc. when analyzing the grade of a coin. This is in conformance with correct and just business ethics and working practice.

If your question is in relation to the above definition of “Coin Grading”, then it would be permissible for one to grade coins like any other skill such as teaching, law, medicine, pharmacy, etc.

Kindly inform us if you are referring to another form of “Coin Grading”.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Moulana Ismail Desai,
Student Darul Iftaa
Durban, South Africa

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

 


[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coin_grading, Last accessed at 29/08/2012.

[2] Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, and related objects. While numismatists are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, the discipline also includes the broader study of money and other payment media used to resolve debts and the exchange of goods, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numismatics, last accessed at 29/08/2012.

DISCLAIMER - AskImam.org questions
AskImam.org answers issues pertaining to Shar'ah. Thereafter, these questions and answers are placed for public view on www.askimam.org for educational purposes. However, many of these answers are unique to a particular scenario and cannot be taken as a basis to establish a ruling in another situation or another environment. Askimam.org bears no responsibility with regards to these questions being used out of their intended context.
  • The Shar's ruling herein given is based specifically on the question posed and should be read in conjunction with the question.
  • AskImam.org bears no responsibility to any party who may or may not act on this answer and is being hereby exempted from loss or damage howsoever caused.
  • This answer may not be used as evidence in any Court of Law without prior written consent of AskImam.org.
  • Any or all links provided in our emails, answers and articles are restricted to the specific material being cited. Such referencing should not be taken as an endorsement of other contents of that website.
The Messenger of Allah said, "When Allah wishes good for someone, He bestows upon him the understanding of Deen."
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]