பிரமிட் வியாபாரக் கட்டமைப்பு முறை: ஓர் இஸ்லாமிய கண்ணோட்டம்

Abstract

The pyramid business scheme that has been in practice for many years is a business system that aims to gain money by attracting a large number of investors. Although it's originated in the last century, it is still widely used. The pyramid scheme business has been declared illegal in many countries, including Australia, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States. Despite this the proportion of pyramid schemes in the community is increasing and people can see the trend of being deceived by ignorance. This is due to the lack of adequate awareness and clarity about this business. In that sense this study aims to provide clarity to the people about the pyramid business and to identify the types of pyramid business structure, their process, and the Islamic perspective on the pyramid business system. The data for this qualitative study are obtained from secondary sources such as research papers, books, journals, Al-Qur'an, Al-Hadith, website, and Central Bank’s handbook. And the results are presented using collected data. Based on the results obtained through analysis the pyramid business has been identified as being prohibited by various Fatwa institutions and Islamic scholars. The pyramid scheme has been prohibited because of its similarity to gambling and fraud, uncertainty, the nature of riba (interest), and the unfair exploitation of public property. In particular, the study presents fatwas issued by some global organizations and Islamic scholars under the Islamic perspective on the pyramid scheme. Furthermore, the study presents some of the characteristics of pyramid as an indication that the transaction is valid when one wishes to participate in the transaction. At the same time, at the end of the study, some suggestions have been made to refrain from haram business practices that include things that are forbidden in Islam, such as fraud and deception in the future.