New US sanctions shake the Iraqi banking sector and ban the use of payment cards externally
Mawazine News – Economy
Iraqi government sources reported on Sunday that Baghdad received an official notification from the US Treasury Department of imposing sanctions on five Iraqi banks, in addition to a number of exchange companies, for their involvement in illegal financial transfers inside and outside Iraq, and smuggling the dollar to prohibited parties, most notably the Islamic Republic of Iran.
According to the US communiqué, the sanctions will not stop there, as the work of other banks that may face similar measures is being closely monitored in the near future.
The new US decision also included a comprehensive ban on the use of Iraqi electronic payment cards outside the country during the next two months, in a move aimed at preventing currency smuggling after monitoring suspicious financial movements by a specialized American team.
The US Treasury Department previously imposed sanctions on 14 Iraqi banks in July 2023, and prevented four other banks from accessing the dollar in November of the same year, and imposed strict restrictions on remittances in cooperation with the Central Bank of Iraq.
These measures come within the framework of an escalating US policy to control financial transactions in Iraq, amid fears of continued money laundering and currency smuggling, which imposes additional challenges on the Iraqi banking sector and its financial stability.
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