An Iraqi bank raises its capital by more than half a trillion dinars, 30 MARCH

 An Iraqi bank raises its capital by more than half a trillion dinars

Baghdad – Mil

The General Assembly of the National Bank of Iraq approved in its annual meeting the recommendation of the Board of Directors to increase the bank’s capital from 400 billion dinars to 520 billion dinars and by 30% of the capital and distribute it as free shares to shareholders in addition to cash dividends of 20% worth 80 billion dinars.

The Bank said in a statement that “the General Assembly of the Bank approved in the meeting attended by a number of members of the Board of Directors the report of the Board of Directors for the fiscal year and the final accounts for the year 2024 and the expansion plan during the current year, which includes the opening of six new branches in various governorates of Iraq. The General Assembly also approved increasing the number of members of the Board of Directors to 9 members and elected a new Board of Directors.”

“Last year was exceptional at all levels, especially achieving qualitative achievements that reflect the bank’s strength and flexibility in facing economic challenges, and strengthening its presence as a leading financial institution in the Iraqi banking sector thanks to a clear strategic vision, prudent management, and a committed team,” said the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Bank of Iraq, Bassem Khalil Al-Salem.

Al-Salem stressed that “these results were driven by flexible monetary policies and effective banking procedures by the Central Bank of Iraq, in which it responded quickly to economic and political variables, and contributed to containing the impact of these variables on the Iraqi economy, and maintaining the stability of the exchange rate, which strengthened the role of the banking sector and protected the rights of depositors and shareholders.”

Al-Salem said that “last year witnessed a distinguished financial performance, as the bank achieved net profits after tax of 252 billion dinars compared to 190 billion Iraqi dinars during 2023. Net interest income also increased to 166 billion Iraqi dinars compared to 100 billion Iraqi dinars with a growth rate of 66%.

He pointed out that total income rose to 452 billion dinars in 2024 compared to 343.1 billion dinars during 2023 with a growth rate of 31.7%, reflecting the effectiveness of the bank’s strategy that focuses on basic banking services such as retail bank loans, large, medium and small companies, and trade finance services for large companies.

Al-Salem expressed his thanks to the Central Bank of Iraq, represented by the Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, and the Bank’s team, for their continuous support to the Iraqi banking sector and their cooperation, which contributed to the development of the sector and providing a suitable environment for growth and development.

For his part, the Managing Director of the National Bank of Iraq, Ayman Abu Dehim, said that “the balance of customer deposits rose to 3.5 trillion dinars in 2024 compared to 2.9 trillion dinars in 2023, with a growth rate of 90%, and direct credit facilities rose to 1.3 trillion dinars compared to 951 billion dinars, for the two years of comparison, and a growth rate of 18%.”

He pointed out that “this growth came as a result of the expansion of loans granted to the category of employees whose salaries are with the bank and small, medium and large companies,” stressing that “the growth in various financial indicators contributed to increasing the bank’s assets to 5.1 trillion dinars from 3.9 trillion dinars with a growth rate of 29%.”

“For the first time in the bank’s history, its assets are approaching this barrier (5.1 trillion dinars), which reflects the growth in the volume of banking business, increasing our market share, and our growing ability to serve our customers, and therefore the bank becomes the largest among Iraqi private banks in terms of the volume of assets,” Abu Dehim said.

In terms of expansion, Abu Dehim said, “We added 104 new ATMs to reach 294 ATMs, while the number of branches in Iraq reached 33 branches, and we are in the process of opening 6 new branches at the beginning of 2025 in addition to our branch in Saudi Arabia, which provides valuable services to Saudi and Iraqi companies.”

He stressed, “The Bank’s commitment to a comprehensive strategy focused on sustainability and digital transformation to serve customers, as the Bank has worked to keep pace with the latest technological developments and enhance information security and the efficiency of banking services, including the installation of the T24 banking system from the Swiss company Temenos, and the launch of a new Anti-Money Laundering Management System (AML Sirion).”

Regarding the bank’s plans for 2025, Abu Dehim said, “We will continue to expand the branch network to 44 branches, in addition to increasing the ATM network to 400 ATMs, with a focus on the development and marketing of electronic banking services, increasing the bank’s share in trade financing for large companies, expanding the project of salary localization and financing small and medium-sized companies, and expanding the deposits of individuals, companies and official government institutions armed with the confidence that the Bank has gained in the banking sector supported by its financial results and advanced services.”

https://miliq.news/economy/44270–.html