THE IRAQI CENTRAL BANK CANCELS THE OPERATION OF THE LARGEST IRANIAN BANK IN THE COUNTRY
The Central Bank of Iraq has canceled the operating license of the largest Iranian bank in Iraq, the National Bank of Iran (Milli), due to international sanctions and the bank’s limited operations in Iraq, according to what Reuters reported on Thursday.
Reuters said that this decision was contained in a document from the Central Bank of Iraq dated January 31, 2024.The document stated, “In light of the losses incurred by your branch in Iraq, its limited activities, its inability to implement or expand banking activities, and…its inclusion in international sanctions, it has been decided to cancel your license.”
In 2018, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Bank Melli, claiming that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is using it to “distribute funds to Iraqi Shiite armed groups, and that Bank Melli’s presence in Iraq is part of this scheme.”
Iraq, which has reserves of more than $100 billion in the United States, is counting heavily on Washington’s goodwill to ensure that its access to oil revenues and money is not blocked.
Iraq recently banned eight local commercial banks from conducting transactions in US dollars and took measures to limit fraud, money laundering and other illegal uses of the US currency in a move welcomed by the US Treasury Department.
According to Iraqi and American officials, Iraq prevented 14 banks in July 2023 from conducting dollar transactions as part of a broader campaign aimed at reducing the smuggling of dollars into Iran through the Iraqi banking system after a request from Washington, according to Reuters.
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