Iraq raises foreign banks' capital to $ 50 million in two phases



Views 35 Date 06/20/2016 - 16:06

BAGHDAD / Economy News ...

A source in the Iraqi Central Bank, the granting of Directors of the Bank approved the return of the bank to open a branch chief in the capital Baghdad, as he pointed to the granting preliminary approvals on opening four more branches, the bank decided to raise the foreign banks' capital to $ 50 million in two phases.

The source said, the central bank agreed to open a branch of Bank Audi in the capital, Baghdad, to be a branch president. "

The source, who asked not to be named, said: "The central bank has also agreed in principle to the bank's plan to open branches in Najaf, Erbil and Basra and Salahaddin."

Bank Audi and works in the provision of banking services by more than eight countries, particularly Lebanon, Egypt, Turkey, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, France, Jordan, and Syria.

The bank's assets rose in the past seven years, according to his official from $ 20.39 billion at the end of 2008 to 42.27 billion at the end of last year.

The source added that "the Iraqi Central Bank decided to raise the foreign banks' capital to $ 50 million in two phases," noting that "the first phase include a capital raising to $ 25 million during the period lasts until 31 December 2016".

The source continued, "The second stage is to raise capital to $ 50 million during the year as well, that is, until 31 December 2017," noting that "the decision raised to $ 50 million instead of $ 70 million, came after meetings between the Governor of the Bank CBI Ali Mohsen Keywords and a delegation of Lebanese banks visited Iraq several times in the past three months. "

The source indicated that "The capital increase will allow the banks to open 15 branches in the Iraqi market," explaining that "the minimum capital exact money to open a foreign bank in Iraq was $ 7 million, but the central bank found that the advancement of the banking sector requires the lifting of foreign banks' capital , in a position to work in the Iraqi market. "

The Lebanese banks objected to the Iraqi Central Bank's decision to raise their capital to $ 70 million, because of the Iraqi banking market is not conducive to profitability because of the security, political and economic conditions and have applied to the central bank reversed his decision, but he refused to categorically continued delegations to negotiate to while reaching agreement to $ 50 million in two phases.

The Central Bank of Iraq announced on Sunday (June 12, 2016), to take a number of corrective decisions to eight community banks, while gave it three months to implement them.

It is noteworthy that the banking system in Iraq consists of 54 banks as well as the Central Bank and distributed according to property between the seven state-owned and 23 private businesses, including Islamic nine in addition to the 15 branches of foreign banks.
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