Iraqi News Friday AM 6-10-22
Iraqi News Friday AM 6-10-22
TLM724 Administrator BondLady’s Corner
A Scandal With "700 Million Dollars" Shakes Iraq.. 41 People Were Involved
Posted 2022-06-10 By Sotaliraq In a statement, the Iraqi Integrity Commission revealed a "major embezzlement operation" in government banks, and "forgery, fraud and money laundering", with a value of nearly $700 million of public money, in which about 41 employees, customers, companies and individuals were involved.
Iraq ranked 157 (out of 180 countries) in the ranking of the most corrupt countries, according to Transparency International's index for the year 2021.
The commission, which is a governmental body concerned with combating corruption, announced in its statement that an investigative team it had formed had found “the embezzlement of a large amount of public money, through forgery, misrepresentation, manipulation, money laundering, abuse of positions, manipulation of banking restrictions and the introduction of reinforcements of fake balances on customer accounts.”
The commission said that the manipulation took place in the branch of the Agricultural Bank in the southern province of Maysan and 4 of the branches of the Rashid Bank in Maysan and Baghdad .
The value of the embezzlement amounted to about 926 billion Iraqi dinars, without specifying the period in which it happened.
She pointed out that the investigative team "reviewed and audited the financial statements of the mentioned banks, accounted for the amount, obtained evidence and documents, and identified the 41 suspects involved in the bank's branch employees and customers from companies and individuals."
An official in the commission told AFP, on condition of anonymity, that this report is the result of investigations launched in 2019, adding that "arrest warrants will be sent against the 41 defendants."
In September 2020, the security services in Baghdad arrested the Director General of the Agricultural Bank on charges of embezzlement, along with 10 other employees.
During the major popular demonstrations in the fall of 2019, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets for months to denounce the deterioration of public services, youth unemployment, as well as rampant corruption and its many facets.
In cases of corruption, prosecutions often target officials in secondary positions. In January, a senior official in the Ministry of Electricity was sentenced to six years in prison for bribery. LINK
Economic Researcher: The Emergency Support Law Is Controversial And Guarantees The Interests Of Political Parties And Blocs Only
Friday, 10 June 2022 3:13 PM National News Center / Special Today, Friday, economic researcher Ahmed Eid described the emergency food security support law as “controversial,” stressing that it came as a guarantor of financial gains and instant exchange contracts for investment companies working for the benefit of political parties and blocs.
Eid said, in an exclusive statement to the "National News Center", that "the law talks about emergency support for food security and development, but its details indicate completely different priorities, at a time when it should have focused on food security and providing strategic storage of basic materials." And the complete ration items and grains, such as wheat, barley, rice and lentils, and the construction of new storage silos that allow the storage of the largest possible amount of grains for at least a full year.
He explained, "The law raises suspicion as it was brief and devoid of legal details that fit its name, which allows room for diligence in the disbursement of more than 17 billion dollars, in addition to the fact that it does not include anything related to the imposition of financial control over financial allocations, which may constitute a breach of the foundations." Legislative Laws.
Eid stressed that "the law came as a guarantor of financial gains and instant exchange contracts for investment companies working for the benefit of political parties and blocs, and through the law, with its paragraphs, it is possible to classify funds in a manner commensurate with their financial gains." https://nnciraq.com/133933/
Sadrist Bloc Deputies Respond To Al-Sadr's Call
The Sadrist bloc's deputies signed all of their resignations and placed them under the order of the leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr in al-Hanana.
The Sadrist movement's media office said in a statement, "The Sadrist bloc's deputies signed their resignations, all without exception, in al-Hanana, and put them under the order of Muqtada al-Sadr."
The leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, had earlier directed the Sadrist bloc's deputies to write his resignation from the House of Representatives, noting that the country's reform would only be through a national majority government. https://www.radionawa.com/all-detail.aspx?jimare=29869
Visa) To (Economy News): We Know The Challenges And Aspire To Reach 30 Million Bank Accounts In Iraq
Banks Economy News – Baghdad The General Manager of "Visa" in North Africa, the Levant and Pakistan, Laila Sarhan, confirmed that the company is establishing a digital link between the citizen and banks on the one hand, and with the Iraqi banking sector and the countries of the world on the other hand, through a network of payments "more innovative, easy, reliable and secure in support of the growth of individuals and companies economies and their prosperity.
Sarhan added in an interview with "Al-Iqtisad News", that "Visa company achieved growth in Iraq, during the past 12 months, exceeding 50%, and up to 60% in terms of payments, and we were able to license 12 entities that grant Visa services to Iraqi citizens, especially that The company is a leader in payments, with a presence in more than 200 countries and serving more than 100 million merchants.
Sarhan confirmed, "The Corona pandemic has strengthened electronic payment, and we continue to encourage companies and citizens to use electronic payment cards, which requires great awareness work for citizens to enhance their financial security," adding that "the Central Bank of Iraq is looking forward to using secure digital technology in all banks, which is reflected significantly to support the confidence of the banking sector.
And she continued, "The number of activated cards is more than 3.8 billion cards in different parts of the world, and we find in Iraq, a growth using technology, and this encourages the increase in electronic payment."
She pointed out that "bank accounts in Iraq should exceed 30 million accounts, and not 6 million, especially since there is a growth in payment via digital phone in the world, as there are 232.5 billion transactions through more than 15 thousand financial institutions."
She added, "We want our services to reach anyone, anywhere, and this is done by developing digital services and requires great cooperation with the concerned authorities. We have great ideas and initiatives in order to push citizens to use electronic cards and not just obtain them, and this will be easier with The development of smart technologies and software that transform the mobile phone into a banking machine at the same time, thus facilitating digital banking operations.”
She noted that "Visa company has been in Iraq for 8 years, but the last two years we have witnessed great growth, in addition to that we provide our services to banks in raising awareness and using modern technologies, and we have cooperation with all banks and we work within the framework of the laws of the Iraqi banking sector, and one of our goals is to be The current government is a model for digital transformation and government automation to restore confidence between places and the banking sector, and we have great experience in that, as we reached the level of 13 trillion dollars in the volume of payments.”
She pointed out that "Visa company is ready to work with the Iraqi government and banks, in the field of converting some institutions to the use of electronic payment, such as gas stations, in addition to the great benefits of electronic payment represented in fighting corruption and facilitating services for citizens." Views 646 Added 06/09/2022 - 7:44 PM Update 06/10/2022 - 4:39 PM
https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=28406
Dollar Exchange Rates In The Local Iraqi Markets
Economie| 10:28 - 10/06/2022 Baghdad - Mawazine News The dollar prices witnessed, today, Friday, stability in local markets throughout the country,
and the selling prices of the dollar recorded, 148.750 dinars per 100 dollars, while the purchase prices of the dollar recorded 147.750 dinars per 100 dollars. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=196009
Falling Oil Prices
Economie| 10:42 - 10/06/2022 BAGHDAD - Mawazine News: Oil prices continued to decline, today, Friday, but remained close to their highest levels in three months, as concerns about new closures to combat “Covid-19” in Shanghai outweighed the impact of strong demand for fuel in the United States, the largest consumer in the world. .
Brent crude futures for August delivery fell 77 cents, or 0.6%, to $122.30 a barrel, after falling 0.4% the previous day.
US West Texas Intermediate crude for the month of July fell 72 cents, or 0.6%, to $120.79 a barrel, after dropping 0.5% on Thursday.
However, Brent crude is heading to record gains for the fourth consecutive week, while US crude is heading towards recording the seventh consecutive weekly increase.
"New anti-epidemic restrictions in Shanghai have raised concerns about demand in China," said Kazuhiko Saito, chief analyst at Fujitomi Securities.
He added, "But the losses were curbed by expectations that the global supply shortage will continue with strong US demand for fuel and a slow increase in crude production by OPEC +."
The cities of Shanghai and Beijing returned to a state of alert in the face of Covid-19 yesterday, Thursday, after parts of Shanghai, China's largest economic center, imposed new closure restrictions and the city announced a round of mass testing of millions of residents. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=196011
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