KRG Voices Concern Over Delayed ATM Installation by Trade Bank of Iraq

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has raised serious concerns over delays by the Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI) in fulfilling a pledge to install 100 new ATMs across the Kurdistan Region as part of the government's financial inclusion initiative.

Aziz Ahmad, Deputy Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, expressed the KRG’s frustration in a statement posted Tuesday on the social media platform X.

“We are deeply concerned about delays by the Trade Bank of Iraq in installing new ATMs in the Kurdistan Region,” Ahmad wrote. He noted that although TBI’s chairman committed to the installation of 100 ATMs a year ago under the KRG’s MyAccount initiative, no purchase orders have yet been made.

Despite receiving over 40,000 applications from KRG civil servants, the bank has not begun issuing ATM cards, leaving thousands waiting for months without access to promised financial services.

Ahmad emphasized that the KRG expects a higher standard of service from an institution often described as Iraq’s leading government bank. He added that the KRG has formally submitted its concerns to both the Central Bank of Iraq and the Federal Ministry of Finance in Baghdad.

The MyAccount initiative is a key part of KRG's efforts to modernize and digitize the public payroll system and enhance government employees' access to banking services.

We are deeply concerned about delays by @tbiiraq in installing new ATMs in the Kurdistan Region.

A year ago, the @tbiiraq's chairman pledged 100 new ATMs for the KRG's financial inclusion program, #MyAccount.

Despite over 40,000 applications from KRG employees, TBI has yet to…

— Aziz Ahmad (@azizkahmad) April 29, 2025