Al-Alaq: The monetary situation in Iraq is excellent and our reserves support the stability of the exchange rate
The Governor of the Central Bank, Ali Al-Alaq, confirmed today, Monday, that the monetary situation in Iraq is very excellent, noting that “the increase in the volume of reserves enables us to support the exchange rate and achieve monetary stability.”
Al-Alaq added in a press statement that the Central Bank is distinguished by its ability to “respond to providing the country’s needs for currency,” indicating that “foreign transfers for trade purposes are proceeding smoothly after the implementation of the new system.”
Al-Alaq revealed that “the Central Bank will launch a new mechanism for travel or treatment transfers next year,” stressing that “there are agreements with four companies to launch a new mechanism for travel or treatment transfers.”
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CBI: Launching a new mechanism for travel or treatment transfers next year
Central Bank of Iraq – CBI Governor Ali Al-Alaq announced on Monday that the monetary situation in Iraq is very excellent, indicating that external transfers for trade purposes are proceeding smoothly after the implementation of the new system.
“There are trends within the government aimed at diversifying and strengthening the national economy, as the banking sector does not flourish except when there is a diverse production base,” said Al-Alaq, on the sidelines of his participation in the opening of the activities of the Arab Sustainable Development Week Forum in its 5th edition, held in Cairo, Egypt – attended by the reporter of the Iraqi News Agency – INA.
He noted, “Iraq suffers from heavy reliance on economic activity related to the oil sector, which contributes mainly to transferring oil resources to the trade sector. This constitutes a major imbalance in the structure of the economy. In other words, oil revenues are converted into building the economies of other countries through the large volume of imports. This requires the necessity of activating the banking sector to provide the necessary financing to establish real projects in the basic economic sectors, especially in the industrial and agricultural sectors, in addition to other sectors. I believe that this trend will contribute to reducing dependence on oil resources, in addition to providing job opportunities and real economic growth.”
“The monetary situation in Iraq is currently very excellent. The high volume of foreign reserves enables CBI to support and defend the exchange rate and achieve monetary stability, despite the difficult circumstances surrounding the countries of the region. CBI is working to find ways and means to meet all the needs of the country, citizens and the business sector for foreign currency,” added Al-Alaq.
He pointed out, “Whenever the conditions and factors necessary for transfer operations or demand for foreign currency are available, CBI is ready to deal with this demand without any fears or concerns, which contributes to maintaining stability.”
“CBI is currently distinguished from the rest of the countries in the region by its ability to respond to providing the country’s needs for foreign currency, whether for the public or private sectors or even the civil sector, to meet various types of requests for foreign currency,” he explained, noting “there is a historical transformation taking place in the framework of foreign transfers and meeting requests for the US dollar, as there were many observations that necessitated changing the procedures and policies related to dealing with foreign currency and providing it.”
Al-Alaq stated that “CBI has implemented a new system for foreign transfers to ensure their fluidity and transparency, despite the challenges and difficulties that faced the implementation of these procedures at the beginning, but we have overcome those obstacles. Today, the process of foreign transfers for commercial purposes is proceeding smoothly, which explains the general control over prices and inflation, as the CBI continues to provide the dollar for trade at the official price.”
“New methods have also been opened for transfers using other currencies, such as Turkey, India and China, in addition to European countries. This will make the process of foreign transfers more flexible and streamlined while ensuring transparency and oversight that enhances trust and credibility in the operations we carry out,” he noted.
Regarding the provision of transfers for citizens for various purposes, such as travel, treatment or any legitimate transfers abroad, Al-Alaq confirmed, “We will launch a new method next year to expand and enhance these operations, just as we did for commercial transfers.”
“There are agreements currently in place with relevant companies such as – Visa, Mastercard, MoneyGram, Western Union – to establish a new framework for implementing these operations, which will constitute another shift in controlling these operations,” said Al-Alaq, adding that “next year or the beginning of 2025 will witness the completion of the current procedures. We seek to provide reassurance, especially with some people’s questions about the fate of transfers after the completion of the electronic platform at the end of this year 2024.”
He included “There is no sudden transition, but rather a gradual transition that began in 2024, where the banks’ relationship was transferred directly to correspondent banks without passing through other links, and the process has been completed with continued success. More than 95% of this goal has been achieved, and this process will be completed successfully within the next two weeks. There is international anticipation to celebrate this occasion.”
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Has “Dollar Control” Renounced Its Faith?
The dollar in Iraq : two decades of “leakage” and two years of “censorship”
The Central Bank of Iraq has concluded about two years since the start of tight control over the dollar through the electronic platform that was supposed to be a filter gate and a guardian eye for the green currency after years of piracy operations through innovative means through which the dollar leaked out of Iraq.
Currency “washing” window… 20 years and the Central Bank is an intermediary for “launderers”
For about 20 years, the Central Bank turned into an intermediary between the source of dollar the US on the one hand, and the money launderers on the other hand… and with forged bills and fictitious travelers, the dollar pirates were able to leak between 350 and 500 billion dollars over two decades, but,
in a moment of sudden awakening… it was discovered Everyone finally realizes that robbery operations, money laundering scandals , smuggling, and financing of suspicious countries and facilities are taking place with direct or indirect contributions from… The Central Bank of Iraq and several banks, whether with his work or without his knowledge.
75% of sales are “suspicious”… The electronic platform reduced sales from 5 to 1 billion dollars per month
The electronic platform began to be implemented in early 2023, but the actual restriction on the dollar began in November 2022, which led to a resounding decline from a monthly average of 4 to 5 billion dollars, to only about one billion dollars per month, which means that about 75% of dollar sales were unsuccessful. In the transparency test.
Sales returned to about $6 billion per month after 8 months
After that, sales returned to rise in mid-2023, recovering to their monthly average between 5 and 6 billion dollars, which the Central Bank interpreted as coming after the banks participating in the auction were able to improve their performance and provide sufficient evidence about the final fate and the legitimate recipient of these dollars.
Signs of “suspicious sales” return.. Central dollar arrives at “banned” banks
Two years of long testing, but the lesson seems to have not been understood well…
It seems that the process of selling the dollar has returned to the old days and has abandoned its new, “straight” religion.
According to members of the Iraqi Parliament, the Central Bank has sold quantities of dollars to banks prohibited from obtaining It is supposed to
banks Iraq’s …half of them are banned from the dollar, and 25% of them take over the auction
has Iraq more than 60 banks, half of which are prohibited from dealing in dollars, and
out of about 30 remaining banks, only between 12 and 16 banks participate in the currency auction, as
these banks control the currency auction and its external transfers.
Al-Sudani considered selling more than $200 million a day “irrational” and not suited to the market’s needs
Not only the MPs’ statements, but the numbers themselves raise doubts and doubts.
At the beginning of 2023, Prime Minister Muhammad al-Shia’ al-Sudani considered the previous sales of the dollar, which amounted to between 200 and 300 million dollars per day, to be exaggerated numbers, and not commensurate with the volume of supposed imports. After sales decreased to Only 50 million dollars a day.
Al-Sudani concluded that the market does not show the disappearance of some goods or confusion in trade, which proves that the previous amounts of sales are illogical.
300 million dollars a day…sales return to their “suspicious” level
But… after less than one year, how much are dollar sales today?… Nothing new…
Sales have returned to the levels that Al-Sudani himself criticized, as dollar sales currently touch $300 million per day, even though imports in the market do not show a significant change. About the previous…what happened?
$8.1 billion.. The Central Bank breaks a sales record in October 2024
Perhaps no one knows exactly what is happening… except that the Central Bank has begun to break records in its monthly sales of the dollar.
Last October, the Central Bank broke a record in dollar sales amounting to more than 8 billion dollars, a number it had never recorded before.
In general, the year 2024 was the year of breaking records in dollar sales.
In some months, sales reached more than 7 billion dollars, after the normal average sales in the past two years were at best. It does not exceed $6 billion per month.
What the Central Bank sold in 2023 in dollars, it achieved in just 9 months in 2024.
In conclusion, in 2023 the Central Bank sold about 55 billion dollars, while in 2024 and until October, sales amounted to more than 65 billion dollars, and with greater scrutiny,
what the Central Bank sold during the entirety of 2023, it sold within only 9 months in 2024.
The Central Bank Moves Its Secret Vaults To Its New Building…An Explanation Of The Truth Of The Claim
An informed source revealed the fact that the secret cabinets of the Central Bank of Iraq were transferred from the old building to the new one on Abu Nawas Street in Baghdad. The source told “Baghdad Today”,
“The information that spoke about the transfer of secret tanks and tanks that were underground in the old Central Bank of Iraq building on Al-Rashid Street to the new building on Abu Nawas Street during the census curfew is absolutely incorrect.” He added,
“The final touches in the Central Bank of Iraq building are still being worked on by the relevant authorities, and transferring anything to the new building is normal and does not involve any secrecy.
It is all taking place under the supervision of the relevant authorities, whether security or otherwise.”
Social networking sites circulated information about the transfer of secret tanks and tanks that were underground in the old Central Bank of Iraq building on Al-Rashid Street to the new building of the bank on Abu Nawas Street during the days of the census curfew.
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The Prime Minister’s Advisor Announces The Assignment Of Two International Companies To Study The Iraqi Banking Market
The financial advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, announced today, Sunday, that the government is in the process of possessing a banking system based on the principles of a competitive market, while indicating that
two international companies have been assigned to study the Iraqi banking market.
“The government strategy for banking reform began with the government banking sector under the supervision of the Prime Minister and is based on isolating government financial operations from the activity of developing the banking market, given that the government banking sector in its current, traditional form dominates 88% of banking activity.” The country has made government banking operations mixed with market activity.”
He added, “We are waiting for the birth of a banking system owned by the government, but
based on the foundations of a competitive market in providing banking services and
achieving actual financial inclusion and digital financial inclusion, and is
consistent with the digital payments policy that our country has been pursuing vigorously for more than a year,” pointing out that
“the private banking sector is the The other is going through an evaluation stage, and
there are opportunities for voluntary merger between more than one bank, among which there is an international strategic banking partner.” He stated that
“the objectives of banking reform in Iraq will end with a high merger that achieves
competitiveness,
homogeneity,
compliance and
governance within the Iraqi banking market, and achieves the
integration of the national banking market with the global market,” noting that
“the entire issue is being closely followed by Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani after
assigning two international companies.” By studying the Iraqi banking market and according to a new vision that is consistent with the national economy’s need for
credit and investment and mobilizing the public’s accumulated resources to ensure the national income cycle is more stable and efficient.”
As for the private sector, Saleh explained that “the launch of the philosophy of development partnership between the state and the private sector was embodied for the first time in the
government granting sovereign guarantees to the private industrial sector to collect global loans to finance production lines for the most important industrial projects from the countries of the European Union and Japan, which lead the future of development.”
Five levels of industries begin with ensuring financing of infrastructure industries linked to the path of development, the
pharmaceutical industry,
petrochemicals, and
refining, and end with important
digital industries, without forgetting the interest in supporting the
agricultural sector and farmers in protecting
“The country’s food security stems from the production of important strategic food crops.” He stressed that
“the government has not neglected to proceed with the national strategy for the private sector, which hopes that the
private sector‘s contribution to the country’s gross domestic product will rise from 37% currently to more than 54% in the coming years, by
providing opportunities to nurture the private sector through financing support.” Governmental development projects, whether through the
Iraq Fund for Development or the
Riyada Bank (mixed sector), which was established by the Central Bank of Iraq to advance the role of the private sector in development and raise growth rates in its investments and contributions to the country’s gross domestic product.
According to the private sector development strategy that the government has adopted for years.”
