The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Department of Media and Information on April 7 announced that Bank of Baghdad had joined the KRG’s MyAccount financial inclusion initiative following approval from the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI).
The MyAccount project aims to speed up bank account creation for government employees in the Kurdistan Region, with the goal to shift the Kurdistan Region toward a cashless society.
This is promising news for the Kurdistan Region of Iraq's financial services sector.
— Aziz Ahmad (@azizkahmad) April 7, 2024
Following approval from @cbiraq, we're thrilled to announce Bank of Baghdad's participation in the KRG's financial inclusion project.
It is a huge vote of confidence in the initiative, which… https://t.co/CLyqzyCDBF pic.twitter.com/WLdmKOLxKd
The KRG started digitizing the payroll processes for its 1.2 million public sector employees in September 2023 by helping government workers to register with local banks.
Read More: The Digital Path to Political and Economic Autonomy
As of the April 7 CBI approval, the list of banks participating in the MyAccount program included Cihan Bank, RT Bank, National Bank of Iraq, BBAC Bank, Iraqi Islamic Bank, and Bank of Baghdad, all of which are part of the CBI’s Tawteen program.
“Bank of Baghdad’s participation will help increase banking products and services and accelerate the emergence of consumer credit for the people of the Kurdistan Region. With one of the biggest branch networks in the country, Bank of Baghdad has six branches in the Kurdistan Region,” the KRG’s DMI said.
The KRG expects that more banks will join MyAccount later this month.
Read More: MyAccount Financial Inclusion Project Follows Iraqi Regulations: KRG Officials
“We have full confidence and support from the CBI and all the banks that are in the program have direct approval from CBI,” Deputy Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Masrour Barzani Aziz Ahmad told Kurdistan Chronicle.
Hiwa Afandi, Deputy Minister and Head of the KRG Department of Information Technology – the department responsible for the technology behind the MyAccount project – told Kurdistan Chronicle that the “MyAccount project is an essential component of the digital ecosystem that was launched prior to tensions with Baghdad. It is part of our digital transformation journey.”
