What is the ruling on a broker taking half of the brokerage fee and distributing the remainder among the other intermediaries, knowing that his actual share is only a quarter, but he did that because the money was in his possession?

Scholars have differed regarding the permissibility of the brokers' partnership (shirkat ad-dalaleen). The point of contention lies in a partnership that involves a contract. As for merely calling out, displaying goods, and bringing customers, there is no dispute about the permissibility of participating in it. Ahmad explicitly stated its permissibility, while some scholars deemed it impermissible due to the presence of an agency within an agency in the brokers' partnership. If the brokers' partnership is valid, the fee is determined by what they have stipulated; otherwise, it is the customary fee (ajrat al-mithl). It is not permissible for a person to take a larger share than his partners merely because he possesses the money, but he may take a share commensurate with the effort he expends.