Restructuring Iraqi banks.. A government plan to protect the financial sector

The financial advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, confirmed today, Wednesday, that the government and the monetary authority are working on a comprehensive reform of the national banking system, with the aim of enhancing its stability and protecting it from the repercussions of any stumbling block in integration with the global financial system.

Saleh explained to {Euphrates News} that “the reform efforts include restructuring private and government banks, noting that the American company Oliver Wyman is currently studying the conditions of private banks, while E&Y is evaluating government banks, to come up with a unified vision aimed at developing the banking sector and ensuring its effective integration into the international financial system.”

Alforatnews.iq

State Bank Launches National Bonds Worth 2 Trillion Iraqi Dinars

The government-owned Rafidain Bank announced, on Monday, the launch of national bonds (first issue) in the amount of (2) trillion dinars for the period from February 10 to March 10, 2025.

He said in a statement received by Shafak News Agency that this comes in line with the directives of the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Iraq.

He explained that the bonds are divided into two categories:

– A bond of 500,000 dinars (five hundred thousand dinars) with an annual interest of 6% paid every six months for a period of two years.

– A bond of 1,000,000 dinars (one million dinars) with an annual interest of 7.5% paid every six months for a period of four years.

He added that the bond is sold to banks as well as to the public (natural and legal persons).

He explained that the person (whether natural or legal) wishing to purchase submits a direct application to the bank, bringing with him the original identification documents.

Shafaq.com

48 Summons and Arrest Warrants against Ministers and those of similar rank during 2024

The Federal Integrity Commission disclosed, on Monday, its annual report on its overall “achievements” in the year 2024 in all of Iraq except the Kurdistan Region.

The Commission stated in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency that it was able to reveal the prevention of waste and preservation of nearly 950 billion Iraqi dinars and nearly 9 billion US dollars during the year 2024.

The Authority also considered 71,823 reports and criminal cases and issued 19,683 arrest, summons and detention orders.

She pointed out that, in cooperation with the judiciary, 48 summons and arrest warrants were issued against ministers and those of similar rank, and 418 warrants were issued against those with special ranks.

The Commission stated that the accused referred to the court of subject matter are 12,994 accused, including 18 ministers and those of similar rank.

Shafaq.com

Al-Sudani inaugurates the Digital Transformation Center: It will reduce financial costs and fight corruption

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani inaugurated the Digital Transformation and Automation Center on Monday, while stressing that the contact between the citizen and the employee is a source of procrastination, and digital transformation will overcome the most important obstacles, in addition to reducing financial costs and fighting corruption.

Al-Sudani’s media office said in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency that the latter “opened the Digital Transformation and Automation Center at the headquarters of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and toured the center, and reviewed the new mechanism for adopting automation and ending paperwork, in implementation of the government’s vision in implementing administrative reform, simplifying procedures, and eliminating bureaucracy and routine.”

He added that ” the Supreme Committee for Digital Transformation was formed under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister and the membership of the relevant ministers, so that the transformation would be an effective decision and not limited to separate steps. It was also decided, based on a study submitted by a technical committee, to establish a (National Center for Digital Transformation) and a (National Center for Cybersecurity).”

Al-Sudani stressed, according to the statement, that “ all transactions, starting from the application procedures for students, up to acceptance, and the transactions of employees and citizens, are moving towards digital transformation, and this includes 2,500 employees working at the ministry’s headquarters, which constitutes a turning point and an achievement for the ministry, indicating that converting citizens’ requests to electronic form will make the process easier in various applications.”

Al-Sudani continued : ” The government program confirmed that the current government is a government of service, and it is directly linked to the digital transformation . We do not want the digital transformation to be just a media show , but the citizen must feel the changes in the service he receives.”

He pointed out that ” we must move within 3 years to the level of an independent body or ministry concerned with digital transformation and cybersecurity , and the plans do not prevent ministries from taking the initiative to improve their service towards digital transformation in order to improve the service provided to the citizen ,” adding that ” the contact between the citizen and the employee is a source of procrastination, and digital transformation will overcome the most important obstacles, and digital transformation provides direct service , reduces costs, and fights corruption .”

He added, ” The more we are able to improve this service and facilitate it for the citizen, the more we will have achieved the slogan of service and follow-up of work, and we will join the world in the field of artificial intelligence and qualitative leaps, and all efforts must be made in the field of electronic transformation and keeping pace with global scientific development .”

He pointed out that ” young students have the capabilities and willingness to make efforts in the field of development , digital transformation and the use of artificial intelligence , and we must choose the qualitative specializations required in the labor market that prepare human capital for the digital transformation process .”

Shafaq.com

The Central Bank of Iraq refutes allegations that Iraqi banks are subject to international sanctions

The Central Bank announced the end of the first quarterly meetings for the year 2025 with the US Treasury and the US Federal Reserve, while refuting allegations that Iraqi banks were subject to international sanctions.

The bank stated in a statement that it “announces the end of the first quarterly meetings for the year 2025 with the US Treasury and the US Federal Reserve Bank, which were held in Dubai with the participation of international auditing and consulting firms (EY, K2 Integrity, Oliver Wyman). The meetings culminated in praise for the steps taken by the Central Bank of Iraq and the Iraqi government in reforming the banking sector, the most important of which were:

1- The development of the US dollar cash distribution system in Iraq, which they considered the most controlled and monitored system in the world, which limits manipulation and US dollar smuggling operations.

2- The qualitative shift in foreign transfer operations and the steps taken by the Central Bank of Iraq to address the risks arising from these operations, which have now risen to the levels of transfer operations carried out by international banks.

3- The consulting firms (EY and Oliver Wyman) reviewed the plans to reform and upgrade the public and private banking sectors in line with international standards and to facilitate the involvement of Iraqi banks in the international financial relations network.

The statement continued, “Since the operations carried out by banks operating in Iraq depend largely on the confidence of international correspondent banks in the Iraqi banking sector, we stress the need to ensure that the official channels of this bank are adopted to know the latest news and not to transmit incorrect news such as some Iraqi banks being subject to international sanctions and others.”

Burathanews.com

“Crucial” meeting in Baghdad regarding salaries of Kurdistan Region employees

The Kurdistan Regional Government delegation is scheduled to hold a meeting with the federal government in the capital on Friday regarding employee salaries.

Shafaq News Agency correspondent said that the meeting will start after one o’clock in the afternoon at the home of Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, where the regional government delegation consists of about 20 people headed by the Kurdistan Minister of Finance with the participation of many general managers in the ministry.

He added that the meeting will include discussing the December 2024 salary and the 2025 salaries.

The roots of the salary crisis in the Kurdistan Region go back to 2014, when disputes escalated between the federal government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government over the management of the oil and budget files, in addition to the repercussions of the war on ISIS, the decline in oil prices, and the subsequent spread of the Corona pandemic in the world.

Baghdad stopped sending the region’s share of the budget, and the regional government responded by exporting oil independently. This conflict led to disruption in salary payment mechanisms, which began a series of delays and financial accumulations.

Since then, there have been many attempts to find compromises between the two parties, most notably the financial agreements that stipulated the disbursement of the region’s share of the budget in exchange for its commitment to export specific quantities of oil. Despite these agreements, they have not been fully implemented due to the continued lack of trust and political differences between the two sides.

As the disputes continue, the citizens of the region bear the greatest burden. Calls have recently increased from political and economic activists for the necessity of implementing the decisions of the Federal Court, which confirmed the right of citizens to receive their salaries without any delay, while the biggest challenge remains finding a final solution that guarantees the sustainability of paying salaries and keeping the issue away from politicization.

Shafaq.com

MP Ahmed Al-Sharmani: Amending the budget led to a “major parliamentary division” and no agreement on it

Member of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Al-Sharmani, confirmed Thursday, January 30, 2025, that amending the financial budget law sent by the federal government to Parliament led to a “major parliamentary division.”

Al-Sharmani said in a press interview, “The amendment to the budget law, sent by the Iraqi government, led to a major parliamentary division among the representatives, even within the same bloc. There is a rejection of this amendment and there is no agreement on it until this hour.”

He explained that “putting this amendment to a vote next week will lead to the failure of the House of Representatives to hold its session again, as there is a great parliamentary rejection of the amendment, and therefore there must be an opportunity for the House of Representatives to amend the law according to what the representatives see and according to giving each governorate its natural financial entitlement without any discrimination.”

The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote in its regular session next Sunday on amending the financial budget law.

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani chaired a meeting at the government palace yesterday, Wednesday, that included the heads of the parliamentary blocs, in the presence of the Speaker of Parliament Mahmoud al-Mashhadani and his two deputies, during which they discussed amending the budget law.

During the meeting, Al-Sudani stressed: “Commitment to this text that addresses the issue of the cost of producing a barrel of oil, which was approved by the Council of Ministers in its forty-fifth session on November 5, and was confirmed in the letter of the government representative in the House of Representatives, No. 15, sent to the House of Representatives on January 23, which is the same text that was voted on within the Parliamentary Finance Committee.”

He pointed out “the necessity for the House of Representatives to approve this amendment without change, to complete the development plans, in accordance with the economic interest of Iraq, and the vision adopted by the government program approved by the House of Representatives.”

Burathanews.com

Finance confirms its commitment to adopting digital transformation in transactions

The Ministry of Finance stressed, on Thursday, the importance of adhering to the recommendations of the Council of Ministers to develop financial and banking performance, as well as emphasizing the acceleration of adopting modern electronic systems in the ministry’s formations.

The ministry said in a press statement received by Shafaq News Agency, “The Minister of Finance, Taif Sami Muhammad, held a periodic meeting of the Ministry’s opinion body, in the presence of the Undersecretary of the Ministry and the general managers of the departments, banks, bodies and affiliated companies.”

The statement added that “the meeting addressed several important topics, most notably reviewing the recommendations of previous committees, evaluating the progress made in implementing the recommendations of the committees formed by the Opinion Authority in previous sessions, and determining the rates of achievement and potential obstacles.”

He added, “The meeting also discussed the proposed amendments to improve the performance of the ministry’s departments and adapt them to the requirements of modern financial management, in line with developments in the financial and business sector. In addition, the minister stressed the importance of adhering to the recommendations of the Council of Ministers and continuing efforts to provide the necessary capabilities within the framework of the government program to develop financial and banking performance.”

The meeting stressed, according to the statement, “the need to accelerate the adoption of modern electronic systems in the ministry’s formations, especially in strategic sectors such as banks, customs, and taxes, with the aim of improving work efficiency and providing better services to citizens.”

Shafaq.com

Al-Sudani: Economic reforms opened the way for Egyptian companies to operate in Iraq

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani confirmed on Thursday that the economic reforms in all their dimensions have opened the way for Egyptian companies to operate in Iraq.

Al-Sudani said, during his speech at the Iraqi-Egyptian Economic Forum, in the presence of his Egyptian counterpart, Mustafa Madbouly, and reported to Shafak News Agency, that “the historical and civilizational relations between Iraq and Egypt are very deep, and the social and economic ties that form a solid foundation for bilateral partnership and mutual opportunities, especially for the private sector to work in all economic fields, whether in Iraq or in Egypt.”

According to Al-Sudani’s media office, “The Iraqi-Egyptian Economic Forum, which was held in Baghdad today, Thursday, was attended by the Iraqi and Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, and more than 300 businessmen from the two countries, and was dedicated to discussing opportunities for joint cooperation in various fields.”

Al-Sudani continued in his speech, saying that the economic reforms, in all their dimensions, banking, administrative, tax and investment, have opened the way for Egyptian companies to operate and for prominent partnerships with the Iraqi private sector, whose activities we seek to extend towards more opportunities and areas of work in the Egyptian arena as well.

For his part, the Egyptian Prime Minister confirmed during the forum “the existence of an Egyptian political and popular will for cooperation and partnership with Iraq, to ​​be a prosperous industrial, agricultural, economic and service stronghold, pointing to the circumstances that the region is currently going through, which necessitate moving towards economic integration and political coordination for the benefit of the two peoples, Iraqi and Egyptian, towards more progress and development.”

Shafaq.com

Agreement on the government’s version.. Parliament passes the budget amendments on Sunday

The media department of the House of Representatives published, on Thursday, the parliament’s agenda for its next session on Sunday, which included voting on the first amendment to the budget law. According to an informed source, the political blocs agreed to pass it as received from the government.

According to the agenda, which was received by Shafaq News Agency, the session next Sunday includes voting on the draft law amending the first law of the Federal General Budget Law.

The session also includes voting on the proposed first amendment to the law on the basis of equivalence of Arab and foreign certificates and degrees, in addition to voting on a decision to recommend to the Ministry of Education to reinstate the system of attempts.

The last item on the agenda includes the report and discussion of the “second reading” of the proposed private higher education law.

It is noteworthy that the paragraph on voting on the budget was included in more than one agenda for Parliament sessions during the past period, without being voted on, as a result of the disagreements that reached the stage of breaking the legal quorum of the session, due to the failure to pass this paragraph.

An informed source told Shafaq News Agency, “Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and the heads of the political blocs agreed to approve the budget amendment in Sunday’s session, according to the latest proposal submitted by the government.”

According to the source, based on the agreement, “the Presidency of the House of Representatives decided to include the paragraph on the agenda, and set Sunday as the date for resuming the sessions and voting on the budget law.”

Shafaq.com