Iraq’s Cabinet has revised an earlier decision to merge its Agricultural, Industrial and Real Estate Banks.
At the start of 2024, the Cabinet approved a contract with UK-based professional services firm Ernst & Young (EY) to study the merger of Industrial Bank, Real Estate Bank, and Agricultural Bank [Agricultural Cooperative Bank?] into a single entity, with Ernst & Young providing expertise and recommendations, and determining the time period required for the merger and the mechanism for transferring balances to the new bank.
The decision this week means that only the Agricultural Bank and the Real Estate Bank will be merged, while the Ministry of Finance has been tasked with converting the Industrial Bank into a joint-stock company.
A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that Ernst & Young will assess the Industrial Bank’s assets, and the existing contract with EY will be amended to include these changes. Additionally, the Cabinet approved a 500 billion dinar [$382 million] capital increase for the Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI), sourced from its profits.
