Zama
ZAMA#144Zama builds fully homomorphic encryption so smart contracts can work on encrypted data; ZAMA pays protocol fees and is staked by operators.
- Market cap
- $196.26M
- Volume 24h
- $43.81M
- All-time high
- —
- Circulating supply
- 2.55B
Passes our 8 Shariah criteria. Needs caution: excessive uncertainty (gharar).
- 7 pass
- 1 caution
- 0 fail
Verdict history
- HalalCurrent
First publication
Fundamentals, market picture and news will appear here.
Halal analysis
Can a Muslim hold Zama?8 Shariah criteria
7 pass · 1 caution · 0 failHolding ZAMA pays nothing; staking rewards are minted for operators' work, but delegators earn passively.
Riba is interest or any guaranteed increase on a loan. ZAMA has no lending function and all protocol fees are burned. Operators earn newly minted ZAMA for running key-management and FHE nodes and can be slashed for abuse; delegators share these rewards without doing the work themselves, which keeps the score just below the maximum. CryptoUmmah also finds no classic riba.
ZAMA is the fee and staking token of a working encryption protocol.
This criterion asks whether the asset has real value as property (mal). Every encryption and decryption on the Zama Protocol is paid in ZAMA, and operators must stake it. CryptoUmmah's doubt rests on uncertainty, not on the token lacking use, so no coin-specific weakness lowers this score; the general scholarly debate is reflected in confidence.
ZAMA is a utility token, not a game of chance.
Maysir is gambling: gaining or losing by chance rather than through productive exchange. ZAMA has no lottery or meme mechanics; it pays for encryption services. CryptoUmmah's maysir concern reflects speculation and concentration around the token, which are weighed under uncertainty rather than as a gambling feature. The criterion is at the maximum.
The protocol earns fees for encryption, which are burned; much current activity comes from confidential lending vaults.
This criterion asks how the protocol earns. Zama charges fees for encryption, decryption and bridging, and burns all of them. The service itself is permissible, but Zama's main 2026 growth has come from confidential yield vaults on Morpho, a lending protocol, so part of the fee flow comes from interest-based activity. The share is unknown, so the score is reduced within pass.
Insiders hold about 80% of supply, inflation can be changed by governance and full audit coverage is not confirmed.
Gharar is excessive uncertainty or hidden information. Zama publishes its allocation, fees and staking rules, but the treasury, team, VCs, angels and growth pools hold 80% of supply, staking inflation starts at 5% and can be changed by governance, CryptoUmmah could not confirm audits of the full protocol and staking contracts, and a court freeze of $12.6 million in a Zama-linked contract is unresolved. These concrete points, which CryptoUmmah also cites, keep the criterion at caution.
ZAMA is used to pay for confidential computation and to stake.
This criterion looks at what the asset is actually used for. ZAMA pays for encryption services and secures the operator set. Apps built on Zama include payments, payroll and DeFi; lending vaults are counted under business model. No impermissible primary use of the token is documented, so the criterion is at the maximum.
Fully paid spot ZAMA is available on Coinbase, Binance, Revolut and DEXs and can be held in self-custody.
This criterion asks whether the asset can be owned in a permissible way. ZAMA trades spot on major exchanges and Revolut and is an ERC-20 token that can be held in a self-custody wallet. Ownership does not depend on derivatives or leverage, so the criterion is at the maximum.
Zama brings confidentiality to public blockchains; no concrete harm is documented.
Maslahah weighs benefit against harm. Zama lets people keep balances and transactions private on public chains while contracts still run, and it works with compliance monitors such as Hypernative. No source shows the protocol being used mainly for fraud or harm, and no hack was found. The criterion is at the maximum.
How you can use it
Tap a card for the ruling and sourcesBuying ZAMA with full payment and immediate delivery is available on major exchanges and DEXs, and the tokens can be moved to a self-custody wallet. This is the clean way to own a HALAL-rated asset.
No ZAMA exchange-traded fund was found as of 1 October 2026. A product that holds ZAMA itself and does not lend it would be judged like spot; its structure would need to be checked.
ZAMA pays protocol fees for encryption, which is a service payment, but it is not used as general money. Tier-1 bodies such as Indonesia's MUI rule that using cryptocurrency as currency is not permissible.
Native staking pays newly minted rewards to operators who run the network and can be slashed; delegators share them minus commission, with a 7-day unbonding. This is payment for work with risk; custodial products promising a fixed return should be checked.
Margin trading in ZAMA is offered by some exchanges but is never acceptable: it is a deferred exchange with borrowed money and leverage (AAOIFI SS 20).
ZAMA futures and perpetuals are offered by derivatives exchanges, but futures, perpetuals and options always fail under AAOIFI SS 20: deferred exchange without delivery, usually with leverage.
Lending ZAMA through exchange or DeFi lending programmes pays depositors interest from borrowers. This is riba.
Yield products beyond native staking, such as Zama's confidential vaults on Morpho, get their return from lending and fail; other products must be checked.
Scholars quotes
The opinion on this is the same as doing the same with any halal assets such as shares – 1) is permissible, 2) is more debatable and there are differing opinions on short-term trading.As I mentioned at the beginning of this article it is not necessary to substantiate the permissibility of something as long as there are no prohibited factors involved in it or surrounding it.Penggunaan cryptocurrency sebagai mata uang hukumnya haram, karena mengandung gharar (ketidakjelasan), dharar (bahaya) dan bertentangan dengan Undang-Undang nomor 7 tahun 2011 tentang Mata Uang dan Peraturan Bank Indonesia nomor 17 tahun 2015 tentang Kewajiban Penggunaan Rupiah di Wilayah Negara Kesatuan Republik Indonesia.Sebagaimana mata wang yang lain, mata wang digital hendaklah tidak digunakan sebagai bayaran kepada barangan, perkhidmatan dan aktiviti tidak patuh Syariah seperti pembelian dadah, pelacuran, perjudian dan pendanaan aktiviti keganasan serta penggubahan wang haram.The SAC has also resolved that investment and trading of Digital Assets that fulfil the above requirements and which are traded on Digital Asset Exchange (DAX) registered with SC are permissible.Third: In light of the above and given the significant risks associated with this type of currencies and the instability of their transactions, the Council of the Academy recommends pursuing research and studies on issues affecting its ruling.Bitcoin is a digital currency that does not meet the legal and Sharia criteria that make it a currency subject to the rulings of dealing with official legal currencies recognized internationally.بناءً على ذلك: فلا يجوز شرعًا تداول عملة "البتكوين" والتعامل من خلالها بالبيعِ والشراءِ والإجارةِ وغيرها، بل يُمنع من الاشتراكِ فيها؛ لعدمِ اعتبارِها كوسيطٍ مقبولٍ للتبادلِ من الجهاتِ المخُتصَّةِ، ولِمَا تشتمل عليه من الضررِ الناشئ عن الغررِ والجهالةِ والغشِّ في مَصْرِفها ومِعْيارها وقِيمتها، فضلًا عما تؤدي إليه ممارستُها من مخاطرَ عاليةٍ على الأفراد والدول.According to research and opinion of experts so far, cryptocurrency is not considered ‘ maal ’ (wealth) in Sharia.Muhammadiyah memandang transaksi dan investasi kripto pada dasarnya mubah (boleh) tetapi dengan syarat tertentu.Our current position is 'tawaquf'; we can't say it is halal or haram, but we say it is better not to engage in itAI-assisted analysis checked against sources. Not a fatwa or investment advice.
Where it trades
Section in preparation
Similar halal assets
Halal verdict, same category
