On July 6, the website of Kurdistan’s Peyamner News Agency reported that Iraq’s second stock exchange had “opened” in the Kurdish city of Erbil. It wasn’t clear what was meant by opening, however. The Erbil Stock Exchange (ESX) was licensed in February and trading is not due to start until later this year. I believe […]
Archive | Iraq Banking & Finance News
Iraq Business News brings you the latest Iraq banking & finance news, with information on developments and opportunities.
Attacks on banks no cause for alarm
The Iraqi paper Addustour (Constitution) has reported that recent attacks on financial institutions have led some savers to withdraw cash from their bank deposits and keep it hidden at home. At first glance, it might seem that such a trend could potentially lead to runs on the banks or even a breakdown in the payments […]
Iraq Launches Five-year Plan for Economic Development
China's Xinhua News Agency is so far the only source to report on Iraq's new five-year National Development Plan (NDP), announced on Sunday. The plan targets annual economic growth of 9.4 percent and attempts to cut unemployment. The country's 2010-2014 NDP was announced in a televised event in Baghdad attended by top Iraqi officials, including […]
Attack on Cash Convoy in Baghdad Thwarted
Iraqi police thwarted a bomb attack on a convoy transporting cash to and from Iraq's central bank on Tuesday, detonating it in a controlled explosion after clearing the area, according to a report from AFP. The bomb was planted in a rubbish skip in the Rasheed Street area in the heart of Baghdad, and the […]
Tags: Security
Are there really people in 112 countries waiting to hear from you?
Is your business in Iraq or going to Iraq or just thinking about it? Either way our community of subscribers and readers in 112 countries will almost certainly contain people who could become customers or influence buying decisions. Some of them may already be customers. Either way, telling them about your business, keeping your name […]
Tags: advertising
Knocking Zeros Off Currency a Long Process
The assistant of the Central Bank Governor, Ahmad Sultan Al Jamili, said that re-basing the Iraqi dinar is a complicated process. He said that process of dropping three zeros from the currency will take long time.
Tags: Iraqi Dinar News
Iraqi Microfinance Opens 100th Branch Office
Iraq’s rapidly growing microfinance industry reached a major milestone this month when the Al-Tadhamun (TDMN) microfinance organization opened its third branch office in the Northern Province of Ninawa. The opening brings the total number of microfinance branches and satellite offices across Iraq to 100 and underscores the success Iraq’s MFI sector has achieved in its […]
Tags: Microfinance, USAID
ISX enters period of suspended animation
Over the last three months, stocks accounting for over half the turnover on the Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX) in the first quarter of this year have been suspended from trading. (See chart. Trading values for the quarter were computed from statistics available in the Rabee Securities Weekly Bulletin, online at http://rabeesecurities.com) Of the first quarter’s […]
Syria, Iraq to Boost Financial Cooperation
Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Otri and Iraqi Finance Minster Baqir Jabr al-Zubaidi met on Sunday to discuss cooperation and relations between the two countries. Later, Syria's Minister of Finance Mohammed al-Hussein discussed with al-Zubaidi the positive impact of Syrian-Iraqi financial cooperation on economic relations which serve the interest of both countries. Minister al-Hussein stressed […]
Bank Reduces Interest Rates to Encourage Investment
An Iraqi Economist said on Thursday that the Central Bank began to reduce interest rates by approximately six percent for loans and four percent for bank deposits, to encourage investments in the country, after a series of robberies that took place recently on Iraqi banks. The expert said: "This shift reflects a new policy of […]
Iraq Forgives Madagascar's Debt
(Sources: Aswat Al Iraq, Reuters) Aswat al Iraq reports that the Iraqi Council of Ministers has decided to approve an agreement that settles Madagascar’s debt to Iraq. Iraq lent the money to Madagascar during the era of ousted dictator Saddam Hussein. “Eighty percent of the debt (i.e. $234,507,234) has been cancelled,” the Iraqi government said […]
Tags: Debt
Significant Growth Predicted for Kurdistan's Financial Sector
The financial services sector looks set for rapid expansion in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq as a brand new stock exchange gets up and running and HSBC considers putting its own-brand on high street branches in the Region. International banking and financial services will play a significant role in the economic development of the Region, […]