Arbun

عربون, Arbun (Urbon, Arboun, Arboo) is a downpayment with revocation option akin to a call option in the conventional sense, however, the contract is about a sale of a good for which the downpayment is part of the price, while the option is about the right to purchase and the price for this right is lost. In classical Fiqh it is controversial, but accepted at the Hanbali school of Islamic law.

The Shariah positions is that classic scholars did not permit `Urbun with the exception of the Hanbali school. There are two concurring sayings of the prophet (pbuh) which are considered to be weak. However, for the sake of Islamic Finance it seems that modern scholars tend to accept Arbun much more than the scholars did so in history.

References

• DERIVATIVES AND ISLAMIC FINANCE by Muhammad Ayub
• The Arboon Sale - A Shariah Compliant Alternative to Selling Short with Borrowed Securities by Sheikh Yusuf DeLorenzo
• Sharia-compliant structured products by BNP Paribas