Rain, a Bahrain-based cryptocurrency exchange, is the first to completed the Central Bank of Bahrain's (CBB) regulatory sandbox and is now in the process of applying for a license as it has passed a Shariah compliance certification for the region, reports the Saudi Gazette.
The Shari'a compliance certification was completed by Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB) which is licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain. SRB has reviewed Rain's brokerage service and has determined that the sale, purchase and custodian activities of Rain comply with Shari'a principles.
Rain said it aims to deliver more value with a Shari'a compliant cryptocurrency exchange. The Shari'a certification covers a suite of three cryptocurrencies - bitcoin, ethereum, and litecoin.
We are excited to open the Islamic markets to cryptocurrency with a Shari'a compliant exchange and a suite of cryptocurrency investment opportunities"
Rain added that it expects to enable top-tier family offices, sophisticated investors and Islamic institutional investors to buy, sell and store cryptocurrency in a Shari'a compliant way.
Rain was founded in 2016 by four entrepreneurs Yehia Badawy, Abdullah Almoaiqel, AJ Nelson and Joseph Dallago who shared a joint vision to create a fully Shari'a compliant exchange to provide trust for local cryptocurrency traders. It is backed by Bitcoin Core (BTC) developer Jimmy Song.
Almoaiqel said: "This is a major milestone in the cryptocurrency and Islamic markets. This is the implementation of Rain's mission to provide the Middle East with a cryptocurrency exchange that meets the highest standards in terms of regulation, accessibility, security and trust.
"We are excited to open the Islamic markets to cryptocurrency with a Shari'a compliant exchange and a suite of cryptocurrency investment opportunities. We could not be more excited to have graduated the sandbox and are very close to our public launch now."
The Shariyah Review Bureau has been expanding its position in the world of fintech by advising clients like Stellar, X8 Currency, Ovamba and Beehive.
"Our engagement with Rain is another important step to extending our position in this rapidly growing market," said Yasser S. Dahlawi, Founder and CEO of SRB. "With more than 13 years of experience in the Shari'a certification and Shari'a audit businesses, we are confident that we will be able to further develop the Islamic crypto and exchange business systematically and help customers like Rain open new opportunities for investors." He added, "We are looking forward to taking the next steps in our Shari'a supervisory role of Rain's cryptocurrency exchange."
