Iraq Economic News and Points To Ponder Friday Afternoon 10-10-25
Oliver Wyman Reviews Criteria For Iraq’s Digital Banks
Iraq Amr Salem October 9, 2025 650 Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), Ali al-Alaq, revealed on Thursday that Oliver Wyman is reviewing the criteria set by the CBI to issue licenses for digital banks in the country.
In a statement to the Iraqi News Agency (INA), al-Alaq indicated that the leading international management consulting firm will provide the CBI with a final report within the next few days.
An aerial view of the new headquarters of the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI). Photo: Zaha Hadid Architects
The CBI has received approximately 80 applications to create digital banks in the country, according to al-Alaq.
Licenses can only be awarded following a set of criteria based on market research, the nature of the business, and other countries’ experiences, where the number of digital banks is often limited to three or four.
Officials from the CBI and representatives from Oliver Wyman discussed in August a banking reform proposal offered by the Iraqi Private Banks League (IPBL) to modernize Iraq’s banking industry and align operations with worldwide practices.
The strategy intends to stabilize the banking sector so that it can function securely and effectively in accordance with international norms and standards, as well as local legislation, while also strengthening governance, compliance, and risk management.
The strategy also allows banks to perform an economic role that promotes growth while providing the most effective services possible. The CBI noted that adopting the strategy will boost local and international trust in Iraq’s banking industry.
Iraq’s Central Bank revealed last month that it reached an agreement with Oliver Wyman to perform a thorough analysis of the conditions under which Iraqi banks are prohibited from conducting transactions in US dollars.
The two sides discussed the usage of electronic payment cards andstrategies to encourage and manage their usein keeping with Iraq’s shift toward electronic payments.
The CBI stated that Oliver Wyman will focus on improving bank procedures to align with international standards.
Additionally, they will create effective strategies for reintegrating Iraqi banks that have been barred from conducting US dollar transactions back into the banking sector,both domestically and internationally.
https://www.iraqinews.com/iraq/oliver-wyman-reviews-criteria-for-iraqs-digital-banks/
The Central Bank Discusses With The German Commerzbank Ways To Enhance Banking Cooperation.
October 09, 2025 His Excellency the Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Mr. Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq,received in Baghdad Mr. Michael German,Representative of the Institutional Clients and International Transaction Banking Sectorat Commerzbank AG, to discuss ways to enhance cooperation between the two sides.
The meeting discussed prospects for developing banking relations with Iraqi banks operating in the local market, which would contribute to supporting economic activity and strengthening financial ties between Iraq and Germany.
The importance of exchanging technical expertise and developing cooperation mechanisms in the areas of trade finance, international payments management, and banking correspondence was emphasized, thus enhancing the efficiency of the Iraqi financial system and its connection to the European banking sector.
The two parties expressed their commitment to continuing coordination and joint consultation to support Iraq's global financial standing and develop its foreign banking relations in accordance with the highest approved standards.
Central Bank of Iraq Media Office October 9, 2025 https://cbi.iq/news/view/3008
Combating Financial Fraud Enhances Confidence In The Banking Sector
Due to the successes achieved by the government and the Central Bank during the years (2023-2025) in expanding the field of digital transformation, activating electronic payment, and spreading the culture of using electronic cards among citizens.
The Central Bank and banks have begun receiving complaints of electronic financial fraud involving the exploitation of the accounts of retirees and various segments of society, particularly this year. Several cases of electronic financial fraud have been identified, including the withdrawal of deposits and salaries from employees' and bank customers' accounts using various fraudulent methods, which constitute financial crimes punishable by the Iraqi judiciary.
In addition to the entry and exit of funds through unofficial border crossings, which are exploited for currency counterfeiting and money laundering, the Central Bank has announced the creation of a complaints platform and is urging banks to launch a broad media and advertising campaign to warn citizens of the dangers of engaging in these illegal activities and their potential to harm the national economy.
Government agencies, the judiciary, and oversight bodies in Iraq have amended their applicable laws, issued new instructions and proactive controls, and developed procedural and electronic means to combat these crimes and protect their funds and the national economy.
Iraq, like other countries, has activated its economic and legislative apparatus and institutions to combat these crimes. It issued Anti-Money Laundering Law No. 39 of 2015, which included 12 chapters and articles that defined the crimes covered by the law and the penalties for each financial crime. It also adheres to international standards that limit money laundering issued by the FATF, in addition to the crimes of counterfeiting, forgery and fraud stipulated in the Iraqi Penal Code and the instructions issued by the financial and monetary authorities, represented by the Central Bank of Iraq and the Ministry of Finance, to combat these crimes with the aim of preserving Iraq’s funds, especially its foreign currency, due to the impact of these crimes on the national economy and the creation of stifling economic and financial crises, which reflects on sustainable development.
The serious matter that contributes to the spread of this phenomenon is the weak compliance of financial and banking institutions with international compliance rules and standards, which means they are exposed to financial risks of all kinds, the most important of which are reputational risks, which directly affect Iraq’s international economic, financial and banking transactions, which affect Iraq’s external economic relations with countries around the world, especially the financial and banking transactions of Arab and foreign correspondent banks.
However, laws alone and internal judicial procedures cannot combat these financial crimes, which requires the development of local and international proactive electronic oversight methods by adopting mechanisms and policies regulated by international agreements for cooperation in reducing financial crimes related to money laundering, terrorist financing and electronic financial crimes related to electronic payment operations. https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=60929
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