The Central Bank of Iraq reveals the mechanism of terminating the electronic platform
The electronic platform for external transfers managed by the Central Bank of Iraq began at the beginning of 2023 as the first stage of reorganizing financial transfers to ensure proactive supervision instead of subsequent supervision through the Federal Reserve’s audit of daily transfers. This was an exceptional measure as the Federal Reserve does not usually do so. A gradual shift towards building direct relations between banks in Iraq and correspondent and approved foreign banks was planned, in the middle of an international audit company to conduct pre-audit of remittances before implementing them by correspondent banks.During the year 2024 and until now, 95% of the transfer process has been achieved from the electronic platform to the mechanism of correspondent banks directly between it and Iraqi banks, which means that the remaining is only about 5% of it within the platform, which will be transferred by the same mechanism before the end of this year and according to the plan.
Thus, some expectations about possible effects on the exchange rate and transfers are unfounded, because the operation will not be unexpected or in one batch at the end of this year, but it was originally achieved during the past period with careful effort and follow-up, except for the remaining small percentage will be completed in the next few period.
The Central Bank of Iraq confirms that trade with the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, India and China represents about 70% of Iraq’s foreign traders as (imports), which called on the Central Bank of Iraq to find channels for transfer in euro, Chinese yuan, Indian rupee, UAE dirham, through approved correspondent banks in those countries, and (13) Iraqi banks have already started transferring operations with a pre-audit mechanism that has been agreed and approved in addition to transfers in dollar currency.
With the provision of personal transfer channels for legitimate purposes and foreign purchases through electronic payment channels, international money transfer companies, cash sales to travelers, and the payment of dollars of cash for incoming transfers to the entities and purposes specified in the published instructions of the Central Bank.
The Central Bank of Iraq stresses that it has put external transfers and meeting requests for the dollar in sound paths in line with international practices and standards and the Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Law.
He explains that the provision of the aforementioned channels and for all purposes at the official price of the dollar, makes this price the true indicator of economic practices, which is proven by the reality of price stability and control of inflation, and any other price traded outside those channels is an unusual price that the people of non-fundamental or illegal practices who move away from official channels in their dealings, so that they alone bear the additional costs of buying higher than the official price for others for the difference between the official price and others.
Central Bank of Iraq
