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The uses of payroll cards raise the controversy over electronic transformation
Iraq 12/21/2023
Baghdad: Hoda Al-Azzawi
The use of employee salary localization cards created a new controversy between Parliament and the government due to the government’s reservations about deposits that it indicated were “suspicious” in light of the restriction of the movement of the dollar to and from the country and the focus on controlling imports.
The Prime Minister’s Advisor for Financial and Economic Affairs, Mazhar Muhammad Saleh, explained to “Al-Sabah” that
“the card for settling salaries does not have a credit line, but rather a card for depositing funds for the purpose of withdrawing them, and
it is subject to compliance, meaning that the customer is identified with the banks, whether inside or outside the country,” indicating
“The cardholder is an employee who acts according to the limits of his income and in accordance with the gradual increases decided by senior management.” Saleh expressed his regret that
“the card was used under pretexts that violate international and legal compliance and was fed from the employee’s account with large sums of money amounting to 20 million dinars,” noting that
it was “given to another person to be withdrawn outside the country, and this is part of money laundering and organized crime operations.”
The government financial advisor called on employees to “adhere to the limits of the permissible monthly income ceiling for this card, especially since it is limited to salary restrictions and may not be loaded with large sums of money,” noting that
“this operation is intended as part of the operations of money smuggling and seizing foreign currency outside international compliance controls, and we warn.” From abuse and incorrect use of credit cards.
The General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers had directed the ministries and entities not affiliated with the Ministry and the governorates) to instruct their functional cadres not to misuse debit electronic bank payment cards (debit cards) for the localization of salaries directly or by giving them to others, and to ensure the safety of their use for the legitimate purposes for which they are intended. Inside and outside Iraq.
The General Secretariat statement added that the directive came after
“diagnosing cases of misuse of these cards through the employee filling the balance of his account to which the bank card is linked with funds that greatly exceed the amount of monthly income, in a way that does not correspond to the source of income declared in the Know Your Customer (KYC) form, or failing to provide Documents proving the sources of these funds. The statement considered that
“the use of cards outside Iraq in transactions falls within financial fraud practices with the aim of speculation in the black market for foreign currency,
which harms the national economy, and exposes the card owner to accountability and legal procedures based on the provisions of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law.”
For his part, the rapporteur of the Parliamentary Finance Committee for the fourth session, Ahmed Al-Saffar, said in an interview with “Al-Sabah”:
“The directive contradicts the government’s financial policy and the direction of the Central Bank, after the Prime Minister’s statements, to move towards digital finance and electronic dealing and try to get rid of direct cash dealing.” Pointing out that
“the current restrictions on visa and credit card holders will delay the transition to digital finance and weaken trust between the citizen and the banking sector.” Al-Saffar explained that
“addressing the large difference in the dollar between the official and parallel prices in markets and banking shops is through other measures and not by restricting the Visa Card, which confuses the markets and customers’ dealings with banks,” considering that
“the solution is to determine the type of Visa Card for localizing employees’ salaries so that they are not sold and so that The citizen does not lose confidence in the banking sector, and he remains free to dispose of his money.”
https://alsabaah.iq/89134-.html
Iraq 12/21/2023
Baghdad: Hoda Al-Azzawi
The use of employee salary localization cards created a new controversy between Parliament and the government due to the government’s reservations about deposits that it indicated were “suspicious” in light of the restriction of the movement of the dollar to and from the country and the focus on controlling imports.
The Prime Minister’s Advisor for Financial and Economic Affairs, Mazhar Muhammad Saleh, explained to “Al-Sabah” that
“the card for settling salaries does not have a credit line, but rather a card for depositing funds for the purpose of withdrawing them, and
it is subject to compliance, meaning that the customer is identified with the banks, whether inside or outside the country,” indicating
“The cardholder is an employee who acts according to the limits of his income and in accordance with the gradual increases decided by senior management.” Saleh expressed his regret that
“the card was used under pretexts that violate international and legal compliance and was fed from the employee’s account with large sums of money amounting to 20 million dinars,” noting that
it was “given to another person to be withdrawn outside the country, and this is part of money laundering and organized crime operations.”
The government financial advisor called on employees to “adhere to the limits of the permissible monthly income ceiling for this card, especially since it is limited to salary restrictions and may not be loaded with large sums of money,” noting that
“this operation is intended as part of the operations of money smuggling and seizing foreign currency outside international compliance controls, and we warn.” From abuse and incorrect use of credit cards.
The General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers had directed the ministries and entities not affiliated with the Ministry and the governorates) to instruct their functional cadres not to misuse debit electronic bank payment cards (debit cards) for the localization of salaries directly or by giving them to others, and to ensure the safety of their use for the legitimate purposes for which they are intended. Inside and outside Iraq.
The General Secretariat statement added that the directive came after
“diagnosing cases of misuse of these cards through the employee filling the balance of his account to which the bank card is linked with funds that greatly exceed the amount of monthly income, in a way that does not correspond to the source of income declared in the Know Your Customer (KYC) form, or failing to provide Documents proving the sources of these funds. The statement considered that
“the use of cards outside Iraq in transactions falls within financial fraud practices with the aim of speculation in the black market for foreign currency,
which harms the national economy, and exposes the card owner to accountability and legal procedures based on the provisions of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law.”
For his part, the rapporteur of the Parliamentary Finance Committee for the fourth session, Ahmed Al-Saffar, said in an interview with “Al-Sabah”:
“The directive contradicts the government’s financial policy and the direction of the Central Bank, after the Prime Minister’s statements, to move towards digital finance and electronic dealing and try to get rid of direct cash dealing.” Pointing out that
“the current restrictions on visa and credit card holders will delay the transition to digital finance and weaken trust between the citizen and the banking sector.” Al-Saffar explained that
“addressing the large difference in the dollar between the official and parallel prices in markets and banking shops is through other measures and not by restricting the Visa Card, which confuses the markets and customers’ dealings with banks,” considering that
“the solution is to determine the type of Visa Card for localizing employees’ salaries so that they are not sold and so that The citizen does not lose confidence in the banking sector, and he remains free to dispose of his money.”
https://alsabaah.iq/89134-.html
