JAKARTA: Indonesia’s top religious body has declared that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are forbidden under Islamic law and should not be traded in the world’s biggest Muslim majority nation.

The country’s powerful Ulema Council issued a fatwa, or religious edict, as virtual currency trading soars in Indonesia and elsewhere.

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Fatwas have no legal effect in the Southeast Asian nation of 270 million, but the declaration could potentially convince many Muslims to avoid cryptocurrencies.

Following a meeting on Thursday, the Council likened crypto to gambling, which is haram or forbidden under Islamic law.

“Cryptocurrencies as commodities or digital assets are unlawful for trading because they have elements of uncertainty, wagering and harm,” the Council’s head of religious decrees Asrorun Niam Sholeh told AFP.