<![CDATA[This exploratory phenomenological study aims to analyze how selected Muslim millennial investors in East Java, Indonesia, negotiate the psychological pressure of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) and reconcile their faith with participation in the volatile crypto market, despite the official fatwas from the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and PWNU East Java declaring crypto asset trading impermissible. Using an interpretive phenomenological approach, this research conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 13 Muslim millennial crypto investors across East Java. The qualitative data were coded to identify recurring themes in investor motivation, social influence, and behavioral strategies. The findings reveal that while profit is the universal long-term objective, FOMO frequently serves as the predominant socio-emotional trigger for initial market entry. Decisions among the informants are operationalized through three strategic patterns: buy-and-hold, active management (day, swing, and position trading), and risk diversification. Furthermore, informants internally justify their continued participation through subjective, contextual reflections on Islamic ethical values, namely khalifah, ihsan, maslahah, and falah. The primary methodological limitation is its geographic constraint to 13 informants in East Java, bounding its external generalizability. The findings should be framed as context-specific rather than representative of all Indonesian Muslims. Practically, it highlights the need for inclusive investment education that addresses behavioral vulnerabilities and integrates technical literacy with ethical dimensions. This study offers a phenomenological contribution by demonstrating that among the selected informants, young Muslims navigate the digital economy through subjective personal religious reasoning and behavioral adaptation, moving beyond a rigid binary halal-haram compliance to negotiate their investment actions.]]>
