The purpose of this study is to investigate the determinants of Islamic digital ethics, particularly Riba awareness in the cryptocurrency market, while examining the role of education in moderating the Muslim scholarly influence in this relationship, taking the case of Cameroon, which is a non-Muslim-dominated country.
The study adopts primary data collected from a cross-section of 68 individuals in Cameroon using self-administered structured questionnaires. First, a simple logistic model has been adopted to analyze the determinants of Riba awareness in crypto-trading and determine the moderating role of education in the relationship between Riba awareness and scholar influence.
The findings indicate that the Muslim scholarly influence, income size, institutional quality, level of education and knowledge about Riba-punishment are significant enhancing determinants of digital ethics (Riba awareness and respect of Islamic norms) in crypto-trading in Cameroon. Moreover, the results reveal that educational development interacts with the Muslim scholarly factor and institutional quality to produce positive moderating effects. To realize an economy with every Muslim understanding the Islamic ruling on cryptocurrency, Muslim scholars need to contribute to research and encourage youth education and sensitization about the torment and punishment of one who engages in Riba, as it is considered exploitative and exacerbates inequalities in wealth distribution.
The findings suggest policymakers in Muslim communities learn about Islamic Fintech to revisit the concept of Riba, defining strict rules that govern digital ethics in the present digital age. In addition, Muslim scholars are called to encourage education, promote institutional quality and adopt inclusive development strategies that consider resourceful individuals who can help promote Islamic finance and Sharia digital ethics in the digital world. Also, Islamic finance institutions should revisit and integrate the crypto market into the Islamic banking sector to develop innovative financial products that are Sharia-compliant. Moreover, education as a policy transmission channel that enhances scholarly influence, institutional quality, inclusive development and livelihood should be encouraged.
This study is original and has no related works. It is situated in Cameroon, a non-Muslim-majority economy where Islamic finance principles such as Riba awareness are rarely examined. By focusing on crypto-trading in this context, the research highlights how awareness of Riba emerges outside traditional Muslim-dominated markets, thereby filling a critical gap in the literature.
