By Andrew Cunningham, for Arabian Gulf Business Insight (AGBI). Any opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq's central bank governor cannot fight crime on his own On June 19, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) placed Iraq on its grey list, subjecting […]
By John Lee. Iraq has been added to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring -- commonly known as the grey list -- following the organisation's June 2026 plenary session. Iraq made a high-level political commitment to work with the FATF and MENAFATF to strengthen the effectiveness of its anti-money […]
By John Lee. The United States and Iraq have held discussions focused on banking reform, financial compliance, and measures to counter illicit financial activity. According to a statement by the United States Special Envoy to Iraq, Mark Savaya, the talks involved the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), […]
By John Lee. Iraq's Rafidain Bank has signed a professional partnership agreement with U.S.-based consultancy K2 Integrity (K2i), during a ceremony hosted by the Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in Washington. The agreement is grounded in Iraqi Cabinet Resolution No. (23274) of 2023. K2 Integrity will deliver a wide range of services, including anti-money laundering […]
By Ahmed Tabaqchali, Chief Strategist of Asia Frontier Capital (AFC) Iraq Fund, for the London School of Economics (LSE) Middle East Centre. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. The Empire Strikes Back: Trump 2.0 and Iraq's Dollar Accounts at the Federal Reserve […]
By John Lee. Iraq's Central Organisation for Standardisation and Quality Control (COSQC) has opened its fourth unit for testing and hallmarking precious metals and imported gold at Kirkuk International Airport. The ceremony, led by Dr. Fayadh Mohammed Abdul-Dulaimi, COSQC President, was attended by key officials, including airport customs and border management representatives. Dr. Abdul-Dulaimi highlighted […]
By John Lee. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has completed an assessment of Iraq's measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, and this week published its report. The assessment is a comprehensive review of the effectiveness of Iraq's measures to protect the financial system from abuse and its level of compliance with the […]
By John Lee. The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) has announced new regulatory controls for combating money laundering and financing terrorism, and for preventing the proliferation of weapons. Click here to download the full document (76 pages, Arabic only) (Source: CBI)
By John Lee. The Saudi Arabian Cabinet has approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Iraq aimed at tackling money laundering and terrorist financing. In a statement, the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that agreement involved, "exchanging financial investigations related to combating money laundering and terrorism financing between the Saudi General Directorate of Financial […]
By Ahmed Tabaqchali, Chief Strategist of Asia Frontier Capital (AFC) Iraq Fund, for the London School of Economics (LSE) Middle East Centre. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. A fistful of Dinars: demystifying Iraq's dollar auction The Central Bank of Iraq's (CBI) […]
By Adam Lucente for Al Monitor. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Why Iraq's dinar is trading below official dollar rate amid new restrictions A top US official visited Iraqi officials last week to discuss countering illicit finance and strengthening Iraq's […]
By John Lee. The US has reportedly barred 14 Iraqi banks from conducting dollar transactions, as part of a crackdown on illegal transfers of dollars to Iran and other sanctioned countries. According to the Wall Street Journal, the banks include Al Mustashar Islamic Bank, Erbil Bank, World Islamic Bank, Zain Iraq Islamic Bank and Al […]
