A Dubai-based startup OneGram, is issuing a gold-backed cryptocurrency, which it says is sharia-compliant,Reuters reported.
Each OneGram cryptocurrency unit is backed by at least a gram of physical gold stored in a vault. The idea is to limit speculation.
“Gold was among the first forms of money in Islamic societies so this is appropriate,” said Ibrahim Mohammed, a founder of the firm.
“We are trying to prove rules and regulations from sharia are fully compatible with digital blockchain technology,” he added.
The firm says on its website that OneGram coin (OGC) uses a unique proof-of-stake blockchain and assures that all transactions are near-instant and private.
Tens of millions of dollars worth of the currency have been issued so far. About 60 percent of the planned number of coins remains to be sold; OneGram hopes to issue them all before listing them on exchanges around end-May.
OneGram has obtained a ruling that its cryptocurrency conforms with Islamic principles from Dubai-based Al Maali Consulting.
The world’s top Islamic finance scholars are debating the validity of cryptocurrencies, in an attempt to determine whether such fast emerging financial tools can be deemed sharia compliant.
By Siranush Ghazanchyan