Sharia compliance in gold pawn (rahn) practices: A systematic literature review

Abstract

Background: Islamic gold pawn (rahn emas) services have emerged as significant microfinance mechanisms in Muslim-majority countries, yet scholarly attention to Sharia compliance dimensions remains fragmented. While existing literature has examined Islamic banking sustainability, fintech integration, and social finance, no dedicated systematic review has synthesized compliance issues specific to gold pawn services. This study aims to systematically analyze the state of Sharia compliance in Islamic gold pawn services by identifying thematic patterns, compliance gaps, and future research directions. Methods: This systematic literature review follows the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, analyzing 48 peer-reviewed articles from Scopus and Web of Science databases published between 2020 and 2025. Thematic analysis was employed to synthesize findings, complemented by bibliometric visualization using VOSviewer. Quality assessment utilized CASP, EPHPP, and MMAT tools. Findings: The analysis identified five major themes: contractual compliance (66.7% of studies), governance mechanisms (54.2%), operational challenges (43.8%), socioeconomic impact (52.1%), and digital transformation (31.3%). Critical compliance gaps were found in ujrah determination practices, where fees are calculated based on loan amounts rather than actual storage costs, potentially violating riba prohibitions. The findings align with Maqashid al-Shariah theory, confirming that compliance must be assessed holistically across contractual, governance, operational, and socioeconomic dimensions. Conclusion: Sharia compliance in Islamic gold pawn services requires multidimensional assessment beyond contractual technicalities, with regulatory strengthening needed to bridge fatwa prescriptions and operational realities. Novelty/Originality of this article: This study provides the first comprehensive systematic review specifically focused on Sharia compliance in gold pawn services, offering a novel five-dimensional thematic framework for compliance assessment applicable to practitioners, regulators, and researchers.