A Jurisprudential-Legal Analysis of Bank Specialization and Reclassification in the Iranian Banking System (with Past Developments)

Introduction: In response to sanction pressures and structural inefficiencies, Iran's banking system is undergoing a fundamental reform through the "specialization and reclassification of banks." While creating economic opportunities, this transformation entails profound Fiqhi-Legal (Islamic jurisprudential and legal) complexities that have been underexplored in prior research.

Methodology: This study adopts a qualitative and descriptive-analytical approach. Based on a content analysis of legal documents, authoritative Fiqhi texts, and the Islamic finance literature, it dissects the various dimensions, challenges, and potential solutions related to the new bank classification model.

Findings: The findings indicate that the main challenge in "Comprehensive Banking" is the lack of a clear legal basis for risk segregation within a single legal entity. In "Qard al-Hasanah Banking," a structural paradox arises from the conflict between its non-profit nature and the for-profit legal structure of a public joint-stock company. Furthermore, the success of these new models was found to be contingent upon establishing a comprehensive, multi-layered Sharia Governance system

Conclusion: While analyzing the existing challenges, this research proposes a practical solution in the form of a novel contractual model termed the "Multi-faceted Special Wakalah (Agency) Contract" for comprehensive banking. The study concludes that the success of the specialization initiative depends on a complementary and urgent reform of the country's legal and supervisory infrastructure to formally recognize the segregation of financial liability (dhimmah) and mandate robust Sharia governance mechanisms.