Arabic (بيع الفضولي) for a type of sale conducted by an uncommissioned agent or al-fodhouli (also spelled al-fodooli/ al-fuduli)- i.e., a person who intervenes or interferes in others’ affairs without being invited or called on. In shari’a terminology, an uncommissioned agent sale is a type of sale undertaken by a person who is not a principal, agent or custodian with respect to the sale contract. Al-fodhouli could also be an agent who transgresses the limits or conditions prescribed by the principal regarding a contract. Jurists (fuqaha) were of two opinions as to the permissibility of uncommissioned agent sale.

Certain fuqaha considered it as null and void on the ground that it leads to defective transactions (i.e., it amounts to an act taken on behalf of another person without his explicit consent). However, others validated it unless it is not in the best interest of the owner. In other words, if this sale is made for fear that the underlying would be lost or destroyed, then the transaction is valid and permissible. For example, a bank may act as an uncommissioned agent for a party, where it unilaterally sells that party’s property to a customer on the basis of murabaha. Hence, the customer will owe the seller that property’s price plus a mark-up as determined by market profit rates, pending the seller’s approval or acceptance. The seller may accept to provide financing to the customer directly, in which case the bank would be entitled only to an agency commission.

On the other hand, if the seller demands cash payment, the bank- as agent- may complete the sale transaction by paying him the cash price as demanded, while collecting from the customer the credit price. Thus, the bank would act as a traditional financial intermediary rather than trading in the property itself. Practitioners of this type of sale argue that ex-post acceptance of the seller (that the bank sold on his behalf) is equivalent to ex-ante agency authorization.