Are bonds haram?
Conventional bonds are impermissible by near-consensus — a bond is a loan repaid with interest, which is riba in its most direct form.
There is no screening threshold that rescues a conventional bond: the entire return is interest on lent money. This covers government bonds, corporate bonds, municipal bonds, bond mutual funds, and the bond sleeve inside target-date funds — the single most common compliance problem in default retirement portfolios.
The prohibition is about the contract, not the issuer's virtue: a bond funding a hospital is still an interest-bearing loan. The compliant instrument engineered for the same role is the sukuk.
The compliant alternative
Sukuk (asset-backed certificates) — retail access via SPSK — plus cash and short-duration compliant instruments for the stability role.
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Are savings bonds or I-bonds halal?
No — inflation-linked or not, the return is interest on a loan to the government. The inflation-protection role can be approximated with gold, real assets, and sukuk.
What about 'green bonds' or social bonds?
Purpose doesn't change structure: interest-bearing lending is riba regardless of what it funds. Green sukuk exist and are the compliant counterpart.
Related
Educational summary of commonly held scholarly positions — not a fatwa or financial advice. Where scholars differ, we say so; for a binding ruling on your situation, consult your scholar. See how Penny screens.