International banks told to start operating in Iraq
(20 July 2004 – Iraq) Iraq’s central bank has once again warned international banks to honour their licenses and begin operating in the war torn country or risk losing them.
HSBC, Standard Chartered, and National Bank of Kuwait, which were all granted licences in January, have been told that they will have their licenses revoked if they do not begin operating by December 31, 2004.
Standard Chartered, which has already reportedly asked for an extension of the end-of-year deadline, said employee safety was its primary concern.
Last May, the bank withdrew the two members of staff it had on the ground. The banks have reportedly started to train up local staff rather than use foreign staff, who not surprisingly have been deterred by the poor security situation in Iraq.
However, experts say local staff lack the banking expertise of international workers, which added to the time necessary to get the banks up and running.
Iraq’s central bank is offering international banks six five-year licenses with one of the stipulations being that banks must keep minimum capital of US$25 million in the country. So far, 15 foreign banks have applied for a license to operate in Iraq.
Standard Chartered, which has already reportedly asked for an extension of the end-of-year deadline, said employee safety was its primary concern.
Last May, the bank withdrew the two members of staff it had on the ground. The banks have reportedly started to train up local staff rather than use foreign staff, who not surprisingly have been deterred by the poor security situation in Iraq.
However, experts say local staff lack the banking expertise of international workers, which added to the time necessary to get the banks up and running.
Iraq’s central bank is offering international banks six five-year licenses with one of the stipulations being that banks must keep minimum capital of US$25 million in the country. So far, 15 foreign banks have applied for a license to operate in Iraq.
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