Reports And Analysis Of The Rise In Dollar Prices, The Central Bank Of Iraq
2023-02-04 13:17Font
Twilight News / During the past months, smuggling of the dollar out of Iraq has increased in multiple ways, due to the “lack” of control measures by the Central Bank, according to the opinion of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee, while specialists believe that the packages recently launched by the Central Bank will “cut off crimes that disrupt national economic security.”
The word smuggling refers to “counter-operations of law and public order, which are among the criminal violations that are strictly governed by law and within economic crimes,” according to the Prime Minister’s adviser for Financial Affairs, Mazhar Mohammed Saleh.
Saleh tells Shafaq News that “the economic freedom provided by the country to deal with external transfer naturally, is enough to reduce the use of economic crimes represented by the illegal depletion of funds.”
Wider freedom
The Prime Minister’s Advisor for Financial Affairs pointed out that “the coming days in Iraq will witness wider freedom of external transfer or transfer of foreign currency with flexible, transparent and tight tools and means at the same time, and through the Iraqi banking system.”
Saleh continued, “The first easy procedural package launched by the Central Bank of Iraq is only an expression of facilitating the legitimate and legal movement of funds out of the country, which will cut off crimes that detrimental to national economic security.”
The Central Bank of Iraq issued, on Friday, the second package of facilities to meet the demand for the dollar, in both sides of cash and foreign transfers.
On Monday, January 19, the Central Bank announced the first package of decisions that would return the foreign currency market to normal after its rise.
The dollar against the dinar has risen significantly recently, due to measures imposed by the United States of America to curb currency smuggling from Iraq.
The beginning of smuggling
Currency smuggling began with “the currency auction that was a means of smuggling it and money laundering,” according to a member of the Parliamentary Integrity Committee, Bassem Khashan, adding, “Now it seems that restrictions have become tight on smuggling, so these results have emerged.”
Khashan explained in an interview with Shafaq News Agency that “the supervision of the Central Bank on the work of government and private banks was non-existent, as (banks) had a divorced hand due to the lack of supervisory procedures on them.”
multiple methods
“Dexit smuggling of dollars abroad has increased in recent months after the US Federal Bank imposed sanctions on banks that were facilitating money laundering operations,” says economic researcher Ahmed Eid.
Eid said during his speech to Shafaq News, “where smuggling amounts rose by withdrawing hard currency from secondary outlets and exchange shops through agents working for Iran.”
The researcher added, “The stages of hard currency smuggling are not limited to Iran only, but there are influential people who have interests in other countries where money laundering operations are carried out, through the purchase of real estate or opening investments.”
Eid continued, “The phenomenon of smuggling hard currency is increasing in many ways, including importing goods with bills that include fake goods, or through forged invoices in which prices are inflated at large levels.”
pressures and challenges
In turn, security expert Alaa Al-Nashwa says that “the Iraqi government without US restrictions cannot limit currency smuggling, for many reasons, including under the authority of the state coalition, especially pro-Iranian, who have been proven to be smuggling currency for the latter.”
Al-Nashwa explained to Shafaq News that “Sudanese does not have the decisive decision on this issue, and is subject to Iranian pressure and American determinations that work to ensure its interests by activating the decisions of the Federal Reserve in reducing the volume of sales to the Central Bank in currency auctions.”
The Central Bank of Iraq announced on Friday that the US Treasury has shown its readiness for the necessary flexibility to achieve “common goals”, and agreed to continue coordination and cooperation during meetings to be held in Washington, D.C., before the middle of this month.
Money laundering penalty
The Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism Law No. 39 of 2015, in its articles 36, 37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44 and 46, punishes the crimes of money laundering, smuggling or affecting the local currency, according to legal expert, Haider Al-Sufi.
Al-Sufi explains to Shafak News that “the penalty (incarceration and a fine) varies according to the type of each crime and its article in Iraqi law, some of which amount to life imprisonment.”
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