The Central Bank of Iraq has suspended Western Union’s international financial transfer services until further notice.
According to a notice circulated by the company, the Western Union service has been temporarily suspended as of 10-12-2023 to comply with the directives of the Central Bank of Iraq. The suspension is necessary to implement modern mechanisms and technologies that align with international best practices and the instructions of the Central Bank of Iraq for verifying financial transactions.
The company will notify you immediately upon service relaunch.
Last July, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on 14 Iraqi banks as part of a crackdown on Iran’s use of US dollars.
The Central Bank of Iraq’s Governor, Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq, announced last September that the bank would no longer be facilitating “foreign transfers” from next year onwards. Additionally, the bank has decided to restrict internal commercial transactions to dinars instead of the US dollar. However, there will be an exception for transactions made by travelers.
The Central Bank has recently introduced a new foreign currency auction mechanism that complies with the Federal Bank’s requirements and conditions. This mechanism aims to monitor the dollar and prevent attempts to smuggle currency out of the country.
