Teller at Exchange Company

21-7-2026 | IslamWeb

Question:

I work as a teller at an exchange company and deal hand to hand with customers, but since we need liras to give out to customers the owner goes to bazaars to buy a huge amount, but the problem is that he deals with delayed currency exchange (a ṣarf transaction with delayed possession). So, everyday he would tell me to give him the dollars from my drawer so he can buy liras. Also, sometimes he would tell me to count the money to know if its all there when the money arrives.
Have l fallen into Riba. Is my income haram or partially haram, and should I leave the job?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

What is Islamically required of you is to advise the owner of this currency exchange company to fear Allah the Almighty and to refrain from invalid currency exchange transactions in which the receipt of one of the two counter-values is delayed beyond the contract session. As for you, given what you have described, you are not engaged in ribā, and no sin attaches to you for handing this man's money over to him, whether counted or uncounted, since this does not appear to constitute forbidden assistance to him in the ribā-based transaction.

Allah knows best.