Hawala

For illegal use of hawala, see hawala and crime.
For the community in the Persian Gulf states, see Huwala.
Financial market participants
Organisations
Terms

Hawala or hewala (Arabic: حِوالة ḥawāla, meaning transfer or sometimes trust), originating in India as havala (Hindi: हवाला), also known as havaleh in Persian,[1] and xawala or xawilaad[2] in Somali, is a popular and informal value transfer system based on the performance and honour of a huge network of money brokers (known as hawaladars). They operate outside of, or parallel to, traditional banking, financial channels and remittance systems. The system requires a minimum of two hawaladars that take care of the "transaction" without the movement of cash or telegraphic transfer. While hawaladars are spread throughout the world, they are primarily located in the Middle East, North Africa, the Horn of Africa and the Indian subcontinent. Hawala follows Islamic traditions but its use is not limited to Muslims.[3]

  1. ^ "How Iranians are avoiding sanctions". Archived from the original on 2018-07-31. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  2. ^ Edwina Thompson (September 2013). "Safer corridors rapid assessment - Somalia and UK banking" (PDF). HM Government. p. 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 October 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  3. ^ Vaknin, Sam (June 2005). "Hawala, or the Bank that Never Was". samvak.tripod.com. Archived from the original on 20 September 2017. Retrieved 5 September 2017.