Title: Riba and Its Facilitators Question: I am a software engineer and I work for a software company. The company makes software for a bank and currently it is making software only for that bank. Should I resign from the job? I agree with your response to "Employment in the Computer Section of a Bank" that "...every department of an organization, whether Finance, Personnel, Credit, Marketing or IT, contributes, in its own particular way, in achieving the overall targets of the organization...". Does my case fall into the same category? If it does then, according to my understanding, every independent organization that provides services to a bank becomes a facilitator. Be it furniture providers, stationary providers or even a sweeper. Is it so? What are the implications of the word 'mukil-ur-riba'? Answer: In today's business world, supply chain businesses are in effect working as one integrated organisation although with different identities and leadership. The only difference between a business unit that works for a company and one that works inside a company is that the company uses the first as an outsource and the second as an in-source. The situation could be slightly different for you if your company was engaged in different businesses including giving service to banks; however, your question implies that your company (at least for the time being) is giving services only to the bank. This simply means you are an outsourced assistance of the bank, in other words you are working in an outsourced department of the bank. Therefore, in my opinion, you are indeed facilitating bank's operations and therefore the same answer given by Mr. Moiz Amjad (as you referred to) applies here, and as much as possible you need to avoid being engaged in this work. You asked if you needed to resign from the job. If you think your company will get engaged in giving services to other organisations then if possible instead of resigning you can only avoid working on this particular project, otherwise it is better to look for an alternative job and then leave the current job (only once you have secured yourself with a new job). You wrote: "every independent organization that provides services to a bank becomes a facilitator. Be it furniture providers, stationary providers or even a sweeper. Is it so? What are the implications of the word 'mukil-ur-riba'?" The difference between organisations like furniture providers, stationary providers and sweepers with your organisation is that those organisations are not serving banks only. In today's business world every business organisation is somehow related to another. Working in our complex and integrated business and economic system sometimes leaves a person no other choice but to work in such circumstances, however (in these circumstances) it is still possible for the person to try his best to be engaged in those parts of the work that are not serving banks. In cases where talks are so integrated that such distinguishing is not possible, the person can consider himself to be contributing on those services of his company that are not serving banks. It seems like none of the above are possible in your case as your company is currently engaged in serving a bank only. "Mua'Kil Ur-Riba" is the person or the source that carries out the task of Riba on behalf of the person or the source that receives Riba. This is different from what has been discussed above. Your company cannot be termed as "Mua'Kil Ur-Riba", it is rather a facilitator of Riba which may be translated to "Asbab Ur-Riba" in Arabic. These are both within the category of helping with a prohibited act. Abdullah Rahim January 5, 2008