Baghdad  The Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Ali Al-Alaq, revealed today, Saturday, that 70 digital banks have submitted a license application to the bank, while indicating that digital banks are widespread in the world.

Al-Alaq said at the Electronic Payments Conference towards Financial Stability in Iraq: “Digital banks are widespread in the world, and their funds range from 5 to 7 trillion annually.”

He added: “We conducted in-depth studies until we reached the establishment of rules for licensing these digital banks.”

He pointed out: “We were surprised by the number of applicants for digital banks, which reached 60 to 70 banks, and we are in the process of studying the applicants’ requests.”

He continued: “We are keeping pace with developments and moving towards development, and there is communication with many external and internal parties, and it is on two levels that depend on the banking sector and the capabilities of the Central Bank to keep pace with development and contribute to developing various programs and applications,” stressing that “the Iraqi cadre is distinguished by its ability to adapt and develop.”

He pointed out that “the Central Bank has important contracts with specialized companies, and chooses international companies to develop and implement programs, in addition to international cooperation,” noting that “the Central Bank has effective relations with international and global banks, in addition to electronic payment companies, as well as its relationship with central banks, and it has continuous movement in cooperation with important banks.

Government Advisor: E-Governance Application Contributed To Protecting Public Money And Reducing Corruption

 The Prime Minister’s Advisor for Financial Affairs, Mazhar Mohammed Salih, confirmed today, Saturday, that the application of e-governance has contributed to protecting public money and reducing corruption, while pointing out that Iraq is witnessing a major boom in electronic payment systems and economic transformation.

The Prime Minister’s representative, his financial advisor, Mazhar Mohammed Salih, said at the Electronic Payments Towards Financial Stability in Iraq Conference: “On behalf of the Prime Minister, I convey to you all his high appreciation for the International Payments and Banking Technologies Conference, due to the conference representing the major shift that Iraq is currently witnessing in the field of developing digital payments in the current information age and its contributions to enhancing financial stability in our country.”

He added that “digital developments are one of the important infrastructures in protecting the national economy from external fluctuations and ensuring savings in the financial system, including banks, financial institutions, and the financial and banking markets in general in Iraq.”

He continued: “It is no secret to everyone that the Iraqi government program emphasized the importance of e-governance and considered it an integral part of the economic reform policy and in a manner of financial and administrative transparency,” indicating that “the major boom in electronic payment systems that Iraq is witnessing and the economic transformation is based on cash and its risks.”

He pointed out: “The vision policies launched by the government in implementing e-governance, returned for the sake of speeding up public collection, protecting public money and reducing corruption, because it is one of the most important systems for the transition from cash to digital payments in an accelerated manner.”

He explained that “today, with the participation of international organizations, local interests, electronic payment companies, and the participation of the Association of Private Banks and His Excellency the President of the Arab Monetary Fund, we affirm without a doubt that development is important for integration into the global economy, which is essential for digital diversity and an important part, which encourages the flow of foreign investment to our country, development, innovation, e-commerce and digital development in Iraq.”

He explained that “the great leap in the digital payments system in Iraq may be enhanced today by the physical and legal infrastructure provided by the Iraqi government, through the decisions taken by the Council of Ministers to facilitate the work of digital companies and improve the digital climate in Iraq.”

Arab Monetary Fund: The Central Bank Of Iraq’s Plans Have Enhanced Financial Stability And We Have Effective Joint Cooperation

 The Arab Monetary Fund praised the plans of the Central Bank of Iraq to enhance economic and financial stability.

The Director General of the Fund, Fahd bin Mohammed Al-Turki, said during the activities of the “Electronic Payment Conference towards Financial Stability in Iraq”, which kicked off today, Saturday, in the capital, Baghdad, that “digital transformation is an important factor for the growth of the banking sector, and with the increase in digitalization, the use of artificial intelligence that contributes to uncovering banking fraud emerges.”

He saw that “the various regulatory capabilities played a fundamental role in creating the digital regulatory environment to motivate banks and financial institutions to employ modern technologies towards digital transformation and banking services and enhance their efficiency and reduce risks, including cybercrimes.”

He added that “the regulating legislation, electronic financial transfers, digital financial consumer protection and anti-money laundering requirements must achieve a balance between stimulating digital transformation on the one hand and managing and reducing risks on the other hand,”

indicating that “the good design of payment systems and ensuring environmental control between them and their interconnection with other systems such as credit systems would enhance the efficiency of digital transformation and economic growth opportunities.”

Turki stressed that “digital transformation is a key factor in reshaping the banking sector in the Arab region. Governments and central banks can play a role in supporting digital transformation by creating digital regulation. This is evident from investing in digital infrastructure and addressing cybersecurity challenges, which helps create an environment that fosters innovation and growth in the banking sector.”

The Director General of the Arab Fund praised the announcement of the Central Bank of Iraq to work on many of these aspects, which makes the existence of a tight regulatory framework of utmost importance to enhance digital innovation, as governments should focus on equal opportunities and ensure that regulations are consistent to reduce risks. Investing in digital infrastructure would also stimulate digital banking services that help enhance access to banking services and products for the population using the financial system and non-using the financial system.

He added, “There is still a digital gap between developing countries and developed countries, which limits the spread of digital payments in some regions, in addition to relying on technology without creating alternative systems, which makes digital payments vulnerable to disruption in the event of any technical problems,”

noting the Governor of the Central Bank’s talk about investing in infrastructure represented by the high use of mobile phones, especially in remote areas, and developing agency networks that meet the need of individuals to carry out withdrawal and deposit operations at the local and regional levels,

distributing the scope of digital identity, including electronic fingerprint systems, and expanding open application program interfaces that are available to the public so that developers can access software that represents property rights so that new applications can communicate and interact with each other. “./End5

Chairman Of The Private Banks Association: We Have Registered More Than 13 Million Accounts And We Seek To Increase The Rate Of Financial Inclusion In Iraq

 The Iraqi Private Banks Association confirmed that there are efforts to reach a rate of 60% in financial inclusion operations in Iraq during the next year 2025.

The head of the association, Wadih Al-Handhal, said, during a dialogue session of the activities of the Electronic Payment Conference towards Financial Stability in Iraq, which was launched today, Saturday, in the capital, Baghdad, that “the rate of financial inclusion in Iraq has increased since the beginning of 2024 until last July by 48.5% during the current year.”

He added, “We seek to reach 60% during the next year in financial inclusion operations,” indicating that “the number of bank accounts in 2020 reached 6 million accounts, and reached 13 million accounts in 2023.”

He spoke about the necessity of including financial inclusion in school curricula, starting from the primary grades and reaching universities, to know its details, practice it and learn about it, and we also have to train, then train, then train, then develop the infrastructure,” stressing that the change is taking place from the Supreme Authority represented by the Prime Minister and his office. / End 5

The Central Bank of Iraq announces the volume of Iraqi funds circulating in international digital banks

 The Central Bank of Iraq announced, today, Saturday, the volume of Iraqi money circulating in international digital banks.

The Governor of the Bank, Ali Al-Alaq, said during his speech at the Electronic Payment Conference, that “the establishment of digital banks is important and indicates the transformation with the digital development that serves the many operations.”

He added, “The amount of money circulating in international digital banks is 5 trillion dollars and is expected to reach 7 trillion dollars,” noting that “60 to 70 banks are the size of the banks that have advanced to establish digital banks in Iraq.”

Al-Alaq continued,   “The experience of government and private banks and the challenges and circumstances they face have resulted in the necessity of evaluating the existing reality and reformulating it in the necessary manner, and there are plans to restructure government banks to keep pace with all the steps of the company specialized in this matter.”

He pointed out that “by the end of this year, there will be a preliminary plan to implement what was agreed upon regarding the reform of government banks, and that these plans will work to reform the banking sector in Iraq.

” He explained that “the advancement and development of the infrastructure of the banking sector is important for the Central Bank, and that the Central Bank has made great strides by establishing the National Payments Company.”

He explained that “the national company will be at a level that is consistent with our ambitions to develop electronic payment.” He added: “There is a great focus on measuring the degree of compliance with any of the operations.” Al-Alaq confirmed: “We follow up on all cards, even personal ones, and know whether they comply with official standards and prevent hacking and fraud.”