Iraq Business News brings you the latest Iraq banking & finance news, with information on developments and opportunities.
By John Lee. Erbil-based Cihan Bank, a privately-owned Islamic bank, is about to launch a $100 million investment fund focused on opportunities in Iraq, and is planning to expand its operations in the UAE. Vice-Chairman Nawzad Yahya Bajger told Gulf News: “Currently, we have an office in Dubai. We are seeking to establish a representative […]
BBC reports that Standard Chartered has opened a bank branch in, Baghdad. Opening the branch, Prime Minister Nouri Maliki said the move was an "indicator of trust" in Iraq's economy, adding that the UK had supported Iraq "from the beginning". The British ambassador to Iraq, Simon Collis, said the UK was dedicated to setting up […]
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has begun to use smart cards to deliver cash assistance in Iraq to participants in its cash-for-assets projects in Baghdad, Diyala and Ninewah. Through this programme, WFP provides employment opportunities and livelihood support to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), returnees and other vulnerable groups. “The introduction of smart cards is […]
The Central Bank of Iraq has reportedly announced the production of new 50,000 IQD bills and coins from the beginning of the New Year. The new dinar bill and coins will be printed in Arabic and Kurdish. The Bank's Deputy Governor said that they want to produce bills of higher value than the current largest […]
By John Lee. The acting Finance Minister, Ali Yousef Shukri (pictured), is reported to have held a meeting with a representative of the World Bank to discuss the restructuring of the state-owned banks in Iraq. According to the report from NINA, the discussions related particularly to the Rasheed and Rafidain banks. (Source: NINA)
Businesses across the Middle East and North Africa will get a £4.5 million boost from the UK, Prime Minister David Cameron announced at the World Islamic Economic Forum on Tuesday. The UK’s funding to the Nomou business fund will be matched by the Shell Foundation to support ‘missing middle’ businesses - those too large for […]
By Amina al-Dahabi for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) has been attempting to delete three zeros from the Iraqi currency since 2003. This project has raised many concerns among the Iraqi public and within the […]
By John Lee. ABC and Fairfax Media report that Note Printing Australia, which is owned by the Reserve Bank of Australia, tried to do business with the Saddam Hussein regime despite UN sanctions. Company officials are said to have visited Iraq in 1998, during the UN sanctions, to discuss a contract to replace the country's paper […]
By John Lee. The Iraqi-born architect Zaha Hadid has said that her work on a new Central Bank of Iraq headquarters is progressing. She was asked to build the new bank after a 2010 suicide attack on the existing building. But will she return to Iraq for the first time since 1980? She told Bloomberg: […]
By Omar al-Shaher for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq plans to increase the combined capital of the only two governmental banks in the country, from about $23 million currently to about $360 million next year. Deputies in parliament say that […]
By John Lee. Standard Chartered has received approval from the Central Bank of Iraq to open branches, according to a report from The Standard. The London-based bank plans to open three branches in Baghdad and Erbil by the end of 2013 and Basra in 2014. It said its main aim is to meet the increasing […]
By John Lee. The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) has announced that its board has decided to "lift custody [guardianship]" over Warka Bank on August 25, 2013, following a final decision made by the Financial Services Court on 26th May, 2013. Warka Bank announced on its website that: "This decision comes in accordance with the […]
