Unfortunately, I have bad news. There was a high-level meeting at the White House at 8 PM last night with an Iraqi delegation, after which Donald Trump halted the release for no apparent reason. I was told that “something happened.” The truth is, nothing happened. Donald Trump is simply being an idiot. The Iraqis were reportedly pleading with Trump to let it go through — he refused.
馃捈 I received confirmation from two high-level banking sources that this was supposed to activate at noon today (Reno time). That is no longer happening and has now been pushed to “next week.”
⏰ As late as 5 PM EDT yesterday, individuals at the highest levels of the U.S. government were telling bondholders and historic asset holders they would be paid today. That will NOT happen.
⚠️ At this point, everything is in Donald Trump’s hands, and he continues to use every excuse to prevent it from happening. Honestly, removal from office might be the only thing to push this forward. Maybe impeachment hearings would finally light a fire under him to press the button.
馃實 The only thing that could force this now is if Iraq or Vietnam bypasses the U.S. and revalues on their own. I hope they do — I encourage them to do so. This has dragged on for far too long.
馃洃 Don’t waste your weekend stressing about this. Nothing is happening over the weekend.
馃搮 Jen and I will see you Monday with our best estimate of the updated timeline.
Lamentablemente, tengo malas noticias. Hubo una reuni贸n de alto nivel en la Casa Blanca a las 8 PM anoche con una delegaci贸n iraqu铆, despu茅s de la cual Donald Trump detuvo la liberaci贸n sin raz贸n aparente. Me dijeron que "algo sucedi贸". La verdad es que no sucedi贸 nada. Donald Trump es simplemente un idiota. Los iraqu铆es estaban suplicando a Trump que lo dejara pasar. 脡l se neg贸.
Lo obtuve de dos fuentes bancarias de alto nivel que dec铆a que se supon铆a que deb铆a activarse al mediod铆a hoy en hora de Reno. Eso ya no est谩 sucediendo y ha sido pospuesto a "la pr贸xima semana". Personas en los niveles m谩s altos del gobierno de EE. UU. estaban diciendo a tenedores de bonos y activos hist贸ricos tan tarde como a las 5 PM EDT anoche que iban a ser pagados hoy. No lo ser谩n.
Todo esto est谩 en manos de Donald Trump, y 茅l usa cada excusa para evitar que suceda. En este punto, estar铆a bien si lo destituyeran. Quiz谩s las audiencias de destituci贸n encender铆an un fuego bajo su trasero para finalmente presionar el bot贸n.
La 煤nica cosa que puede forzar esto ahora es si Irak o Vietnam lo eluden y revalorizan por su cuenta. Espero que lo hagan. Los animo a que lo hagan. Esta tonter铆a ha durado demasiado tiempo.
No pierdan su tiempo este fin de semana preocup谩ndose por esto. No va a suceder durante el fin de semana. Jen y yo los veremos el lunes con nuestra mejor estimaci贸n del nuevo cronograma.
❤️ Thank you for being part of this community. If you enjoy my content, please consider liking, commenting, and sharing this post. These simple actions help the algorithm reach more people and allow this information to be seen by a wider audience.
Dr. Nabil Rahim Al-Abadi Having worked in various banks and having witnessed firsthand the daily operations of electronic payment channels, ATMs, and back-office banking systems, I can confidently say that the Central Bank of Iraq’s decision to issue licenses for fully digital banks is unlike any previous decision. This is not merely an administrative adjustment to the licensing landscape; it is a complete redefinition of the nature of banking in Iraq.
Throughout my career, I’ve progressed from traditional payment systems that relied on manual data entry in core banking systems, to the era of network connectivity and the widespread adoption of ATMs—a stage academically termed digitization, meaning the conversion of paper records to electronic format. Following this, we entered the digitalization phase when banks began linking their services, and customers transitioned from visiting branches to using mobile applications for money transfers or inquiries.
However, as every experienced banking operations manager knows, these two phases still retain the “branch mentality”—there’s always a manual back-end account, an auditing officer, and a branch that maintains the documentation.
What the central bank is doing now, under the umbrella of the reform plan implemented by Oliver Wyman, is moving the sector into its third, radical phase: true digital transformation. Here, we are no longer talking about a bank with branches offering electronic services, but rather a complete banking entity emerging without branches, without physical vaults, and without the paper archives that have burdened operations for years. This digital entity will become a direct replacement for the banks that will exit the market after the reform plan is implemented. And that is the crux of the matter.
Regarding the challenges, the biggest one isn’t technology, but rather the banking mindset. The most serious obstacle to implementing this project is attempting to manage the new digital bank with the mindset of a traditional branch manager. Digital banking requires staff who understand that banking products are designed based on the customer’s mobile journey, not on the branch’s location or interface. This explains why the training workshops target operations managers, payments managers, and branch managers simultaneously—because everyone needs to understand that their role will fundamentally change.
Granting a license to a digital bank is not merely a paperwork approval; it is a complex national project requiring meticulous management of its scope, a timeline that ensures a smooth transition for customers from withdrawing banks, and skillful management of reputational risks should the service be disrupted, even for a single hour, after launch. The Iraqi citizen, accustomed to receiving their salary from a branch employee, should not feel for a moment that their money is at risk when it suddenly shifts to an electronic application. This is where the role of financial literacy managers, whom you are targeting to fulfill this national duty, comes in.
In my estimation, the new digital bank that will obtain this license will not be merely a second choice, but will excel in several areas. It will offer smaller, faster lending products through artificial intelligence algorithms that learn from customer financial behavior instead of requiring guarantors and paper guarantees. It will also provide a mobile payment service that surpasses any existing traditional wallet, all with significantly lower operating costs. In conclusion, this step is an implicit acknowledgment by the Central Bank that the future of banking lies not in opening new branches, but in engineering purely digital financial systems. And, based on my experience within the banking and financial institutions, I affirm that the success of this new entity hinges on the extent to which our banking staff grasp the tools for managing digital transformation and project management.
❤️ Thank you for being part of this community. If you enjoy my content, please consider liking, commenting, and sharing this post. These simple actions help the algorithm reach more people and allow this information to be seen by a wider audience.
❤️ Thank you for being part of this community. If you enjoy my content, please consider liking, commenting, and sharing this post. These simple actions help the algorithm reach more people and allow this information to be seen by a wider audience.
❤️ Thank you for being part of this community. If you enjoy my content, please consider liking, commenting, and sharing this post. These simple actions help the algorithm reach more people and allow this information to be seen by a wider audience.
PUK Political Bureau member Darbaz Kosrat Rasul said the channels of communication and dialogue are ongoing with other parties regarding the formation of the new government, adding, “If it were only about posts, it would have been easier to reach an agreement.”
馃嚠馃嚩 IRAQ STATUS UPDATE – Kurdistan Government Formation
馃嚠馃嚩 KURDISTAN GOVERNMENT TALKS CONTINUE AS U.S. PUSHES FOR AGREEMENT 馃
馃煛 Negotiations to form the new Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) remain ongoing, with communication channels still open between the major Kurdish parties.
馃棧️ PUK Political Bureau member Darbaz Kosrat Rasul stated that talks are progressing, but emphasized that the obstacles go far beyond the distribution of government posts: “If it were only about posts, it would have been easier to reach an agreement.”
⚖️ Key issues reportedly include power-sharing arrangements, governance structures, policy priorities, and future cooperation between the KDP and PUK.
馃彌️ Despite delays, there are no signs of a breakdown in negotiations, and efforts to form the new cabinet continue.
馃嚭馃嚫 The United States is actively encouraging a swift agreement, viewing a stable KRG as critical for regional security, cooperation against ISIS, and stronger coordination between Erbil and Baghdad on budget, energy, and economic issues.
馃搳 Assessment: 馃煝 Dialogue ongoing 馃煝 Political institutions functioning 馃煛 Government formation delayed 馃煝 Active U.S. diplomatic engagement 馃煝 High likelihood of an eventual agreement
❤️ Thank you for being part of this community. If you enjoy my content, please consider liking, commenting, and sharing this post. These simple actions help the algorithm reach more people and allow this information to be seen by a wider audience.