ha·wa·la  (hə-wä'lə)  n. A system for remitting money, primarily in Islamic societies, in which a financial obligation between two parties is settled by transferring it to a third party, as when money owed by a debtor to a creditor is paid by a person who owes the debtor money. Hawala transactions are usually based on trust and leave no written record. [Arabic ḥawāla, bill of exchange, check, from ḥāla, to change.] |
| hawala | |
noun | |
| an underground banking system based on trust whereby money can be made available internationally without actually moving it or leaving a record of the transaction; "terrorists make extensive use of hawala" |