KTFA:
Clare: The Central Bank of Iraq organizes a celebration on the occasion of Financial Inclusion Week
May 02, 2024
The Financial Inclusion Department at the Central Bank of Iraq organized a celebration on the occasion of Financial Inclusion Week in Iraq.
The celebration reviewed the efforts of the Central Bank of Iraq in promoting and achieving the ideal environment for the success of financial inclusion in Iraq, encouraging savings and spreading banking culture.
His Excellency the Governor of the Central Bank, Mr. Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq, confirmed on the sidelines of the celebration that the steps achieved in financial inclusion that were accomplished today are accelerating and can close the gap that occurred during the past years as a result of the circumstances that Iraq went through
His Excellency stated that the bank has ongoing meetings with the Iraqi government to expand the customer base in electronic payment methods and enhance financial inclusion, as we see a great response from various state institutions in the context of expanding the financial and banking culture in Iraq.
His Excellency believed that the factors that lead to the success and expansion of the role of financial inclusion are the citizen’s confidence in the institutions and tools available to him, as well as his vision of his interest in using them.
He continued, that the Central Bank has become at the forefront of global central banks using various financial technologies that provide speed and accuracy, revealing at the same time that the bank has received large preparations to establish digital banks and the relevant departments are working on the possibility of granting them a license to carry out their work in accordance with the controls and instructions issued by the bank.
His Excellency noted the “Riyada” Bank project, which will be an important project as we are in the advanced stages of establishing the bank and will constitute a qualitative leap in supporting and financing small and medium enterprises and providing job opportunities for wide segments of society. It will also have branches throughout Iraq.
It is noteworthy that the Financial Inclusion Department organized many different events in the capital, Baghdad, and other governorates within the Financial Inclusion Week in Iraq, which began on April 27 and continued until May 2 of the current year.
Central Bank of Iraq
Information Office
2 – May – 2024 LINK
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Clare: The Sudanese advisor points out that the dollar exchange rate in the parallel market is close to the official one
5/2/2024
Today, Thursday, Adviser to the Prime Minister for Financial Affairs, Mazhar Muhammad Saleh, explained the dangers of the exchange rate fluctuations if demands to float the dinar are met, stressing that the dollar exchange rate in the parallel market is gradually approaching the official one.
Saleh explained that calls for floating the dinar to end the gap between the official exchange rate and the parallel market may be possible in an economy in which the free market alone influences the movement of the balance of payments.
He pointed out that the monetary authority alone is the main source of supply of foreign currency that meets the desired demand for foreign exchange in the money market, indicating that the floating scenario means in all cases adopting the prevailing exchange rate in the parallel market in order to achieve the goal of stability and balance in the official exchange rate.
Saleh warned that floating the dinar would mean the withdrawal of the monetary authority from being a primary central supplier of foreign currency, which would lead to the dominance of limited supply forces of foreign exchange in the parallel market. He stressed that this scenario might create a wave of inflationary expectations, which would force monetary policy. To intervene with foreign reserves to impose a state of stability in the general level of prices.
He pointed out that the difference between the exchange rate in the parallel market and the official one currently came as a result of the inability of the authority’s monetary reserves to bring the two prices closer together, warning that the new exchange rate resulting from the flotation may cause a wave of inflationary expectations, which makes monetary policy intervene with foreign reserves to preserve On price stability. LINK
