Specialists: Islamic Sukuk Are An Alternative To Financial Instruments, 25 JAN

 Specialists: Islamic Sukuk Are An Alternative To Financial Instruments

 Economical 01/23/2024    Baghdad: Hussein Thaghab  Interest is growing in adopting Islamic sukuks as part of Iraq's strategic policy, as they are an important alternative to other financial instruments that depend on interest, and which can finance the deficit suffered by the federal general budget.

During the first annual conference, the Center for Banking Studies at the Central Bank of Iraq considered Islamic bonds part of Iraq's strategic policy.

He stressed the acceleration of the legislation of the “Islamic Sukuk Law in Iraq.”

The participants also stressed the need to pay attention to developing appropriate legislation in order to make it successful in Iraq, and to make a media and promotional effort to spread the culture of investment in Islamic Sukuks among banks and financial institutions before the law is enacted.

Islamic banking specialist Professor Dr. Sadiq Rashid Al-Shammari pointed out that the advantages of sukuks are several, the most important of which is financing large projects that no single entity has the capacity to finance.

 They are an investment channel for absorbing financial surpluses that their owners wish to invest and recover easily.

They also contribute to managing liquidity in cases of deficit and surplus.

If the bank has surplus liquidity, invest.

What he has in buying sukuks, and if he needs liquidity, he sells them with ease in the secondary market or the stock exchange,  in addition to  the fair distribution of wealth, because it links investment to reality and the real economy and enables all investors to benefit from the project’s profits in a fair way, as wealth is distributed on a large scale without Be a country among the rich, diversify your portfolio investments and spread your risks.

Investment sukuks mean that they are a document issued in the name of their owner or holder in denominations of equal value to prove the right of their owner to the financial rights and obligations they represent, and that

they represent a common share in the ownership of assets designated for investment, whether objects, benefits, services, or a mixture thereof, and moral rights, debts, and money, and  they do not represent debt. Issued to the bearer.

He added that the sukuk, especially the sukuk of leased assets, are characterized by being an off-budget financing instrument, as the leased assets are owned by the sukuk holders during the term of the sukuk, and the obligation of the sukuk holder is limited to paying the rent to the sukuk holders, which is a revenue expense.

On the contrary, in the case of borrowing to finance the purchase of some assets, this leads to... To increase the value of liabilities because they are capital expenditures,  this type of sukuk also has zakat and tax advantages.

He pointed out that  Islamic sukuks can attract customers by providing high-quality services and providing the necessary financing for them to activate their commercial, investment, industrial and agricultural operations.

They also provide sufficient liquidity available to dealing investors, which is the desired goal of creating trust and achieving security, that is, achieving actual cooperation between those with financial surpluses.

And project owners who use these surpluses and not transfer the risk to one party or the other by creating advanced products capable of competing with the products offered by traditional banks, provided that they do not conflict with the rule of Sharia.

The Director General of the Center for Banking Studies at the Central Bank of Iraq, Dr. Bassem Abdul Hadi Hassan, highlighted the importance of submitting the draft Islamic Sukuk Law to the House of Representatives,

so he is keen to discuss the role of Islamic finance and the Sukuk market in particular as a vital financial tool that contributes significantly to development. Economic. 

He added that the Central Bank of Iraq has a major role in this process by proposing the Islamic Sukuk Law and providing technical and practical assistance to the relevant authorities in the Islamic banking sector, and  therefore it has become useful to learn about international experiences in this field, especially Arab ones.   https://alsabaah.iq/90893-.html

"RV UPDATE" BY MARKZ, 25 JAN

 MarkZ  

 [via PDK]  

We keep getting positive news. Over the last 2 days in Iraq I’ve seen about 4 articles pushing to remove the US. And about them executing their white papers or economic reforms and restoring their exchange rate.  To me “restoring” is to put it back the way it was. Right? And restoring it back to its former glory when it was one of the most valuable currencies in the world. So to me that would mean at least $3+...If you do the math $3.22 in 1991 and adding in inflation would be a rate of around $7.25 today. Wouldn’t that be something.  WOW

Comment:  ...we are expected to get notifications Friday morning.  MarkZ:  That is definitely the rumors running around.  Let’s see if it pans out or not.

Question:  What’s the impact of Iraq joining the Bank of international Settlements?  

MarkZ:  It’s their acceptance and elevation to the World Trade Organization and all the other organizations they were removed from when they were sanctioned many years ago. These sanctions are quickly all going away which means they will be able to reinstate or revalue their currency. It is just one more clear indicator of how close we are getting. 

Iraqi dinar holders time to celebrate within 24 to 36 hours 🔥 Iraqi dina...

An Academic Explains The Reasons For The "Failure" Of Establishing Solid Banking Relationships In Iraq, 25 JAN

 An Academic Explains The Reasons For The "Failure" Of Establishing Solid Banking Relationships In Iraq

 Economy |Yesterday, |  Baghdad Today – Baghdad  Today, Tuesday (January 23, 2024), the academic in economics, Mehdi Saleh, explained the reasons for the “failure” in establishing solid banking relations with the global and regional sector, while pointing to the necessity of developing banks and institutions at the regional level.

The main player   Saleh said in an interview with “Baghdad Today” that “the central bank is the state bank and lending and issuing have important powers at its disposal that made it the main player in establishing monetary policy in Iraq,” pointing out that  “the banking system, with all its civil and governmental titles, is the middle link between the central bank.” And the public,” referring to merchants, companies, and other segments. 

He added,   “The middle circle, referring to the specialized banks, is not sufficiently prepared to establish relationships with the global banking system because it has remained for many decades in local roles, that is,

 it has no experience, in addition to the very developed situation of international banks, especially in the file of industrial and agricultural banks and the rest of the specialized banks.”

 He added, "But this does not mean stopping, but rather striving to develop them, especially since Iraq was the first to establish banks in the region."

 Parasitic performance

He pointed out "the necessity of staying away from the parasitic performance practiced by some banks by seeking speculation and quick profit, hunting for opportunities,

and seeking to transfer the experience of Gulf and Southeast Asian banks in creating visions that contribute to the recovery of markets and building investments, to be the beginning of the move towards  enabling performance in banking work at the level." Regional and international.”

Earlier, Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani reviewed to the President of the World Bank Group, Ajay Banga, Iraq’s steps towards financial and banking reform.

On the sidelines of his participation in the Davos Economic Forum, Al-Sudani met with the President of the World Bank Group, Ajay Banga, and discussed with him the cooperation relations between Iraq and the World Bank, in various economic fields, which contribute to supporting the government’s efforts and strategic plans, towards more investment and development opportunities in Iraq.

According to an official government statement received by Baghdad Today.

The statement explained,   “The meeting also witnessed a review of the measures and steps taken by the government and the Central Bank of Iraq, in terms of financial and banking reform, and

the projects financed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) were also discussed, most notably the project to rehabilitate and develop Baghdad International Airport.”.  The Prime Minister stressed, according to the statement, 

 “the importance of World Bank reports reflecting, realistically, the new government’s policies that were implemented in the economic and banking sectors and supporting the private sector, which aim to diversify the economy,  increase its growth, and  achieve financial stability, in light of the challenges facing the region and the world.” https://baghdadtoday.news/240569-أكاديمي-يوضح-أسباب-فشل-تأسيس-علاقات-مصرفية-رصينة-في-العراق.html

"RV UPDATE" BY MNT GOAT, 25 JAN

 Mnt Goat 

  Quote from Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein:  “Iraq’s endeavor to occupy its natural position in the region and the international community”.  

...Part of what it means for us investors in the dinar is to realize that when they mention international community, they are talking global...liberating Iraq from the war years.  It is a FACT they cannot operate effectively in the global arena without a tradable currency on the currency exchanges, such as FOREX.Iraq is also at the sheer brink of a final announcement into the World Trade Organization (WTO), which we know they want back their dinar in the process...I believe that when you put all the FACTS together you can clearly see where they are leading Iraq and it is down a very nice road of prosperity and abundance...   

On the sidelines of the Davos Forum...held in Switzerland last week, Iraqi Prime Minister Al-Sudani and his accompanying delegation, and Ali Al-Alaq, Governor of the Central Bank, continued to hold meetings, understandings, and negotiations with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the President of the European Bank forReconstruction, the American bank, J.P. Morgan, and international financial institutions, with the aim of accelerating the procedures that… and I quote –

 “It is implemented by the government in cooperation with the Central Bank towards achieving financial and banking reform”. ... It is all VERY GOOD news for us investors.

Zimbabwe What the People are Doing to Combat Inflation #iqd #vnd #gold E...BY SANDY INGRAM

Issuing Electronic Cards To Small Merchants With A Ceiling Of $100,000 Per Month, 25 JAN

 Issuing Electronic Cards To Small Merchants With A Ceiling Of $100,000 Per Month

  January 23 13:15 Information/Baghdad..  Today, Tuesday, a government source revealed the issuance of electronic cards to small merchants, while specifying their conditions.

The source said in a statement to the official agency, followed by “Al-Ma’louma”:

“Based on the directives of the Prime Minister and in light of the discussions that took place between the government, the Central Bank of Iraq and electronic payment companies for more than two months,

a mechanism for issuing electronic cards to small merchants was approved, with a ceiling of 100 thousand dollars.”“.” He added, Monthly to implement payment operations for import purposes in order to reduce the demand for cash dollars by real merchants

"The new mechanism includes:   

1- Payment companies submit a request to the Central Bank to obtain approval to create this product and launch the (merchant) card.

2- Determine the uses of the cards to be for small merchants in line with the external transfer controls issued by the Central Bank for the year 2023, provided that

The ceiling of these cards shall not exceed (100) thousand dollars per month, with the possibility of raising the ceiling in the future in light of the results of the actual application.

3- The cards are used for the purposes of purchasing goods and services from known suppliers according to pre-determined white lists.

4- The company bears its duty to apply diligence Due and in accordance with basic requirements, the most important of which are the main international embargo lists of the United Nations, the Office of Foreign Assets Control and the European Union.

5- Small merchants’ funds are deposited in the branches of various Iraqi banks in Iraqi dinars.

https://almaalomah.me/news/54112/economy/إصدار-بطاقات-إلكترونية-لصغار-التجار-بسقف-100-الف-دولار-شهريا