Warka Bank started out as one of the first private banks in Iraq. The company was set up in 1999 during the final years of Saddam Hussein’s regime. Since then, the Iraqi banking industry has changed substantially, from one with only a few banks limited to the opening of saving accounts in dinar currency to one with higher competition and service portfolios starting to catch up with their international peers.
Warka Bank is currently the fifth largest bank and the largest private bank in Iraq. The company has experienced a steady development since 1999, reaching a capital of IQD51 billion. From only two branches and 400 clients in 1999, it now has 110 branches and over 60 thousand customers. The bank’s ATM network is the largest in Iraq. At the moment, the bank has 200 fully operational ATM networks and another 500 in the warehouse. They also have the largest Iraq Western Union Network in the country and is in talks for signing a partnership with MoneyGram International.
The company invests heavily in the IT system in order to be prepared to cater for the increasing number of transactions. They were the first to introduce the SWIFT system, which is considered the most advanced system for banking, and also has a banking system from ICS (International Computer Systems). Backup and recovery solutions are also installed at every branch and they have a disaster recovery center in Amman in case something serious happens in Iraq.
Warka Bank has won major corporate and state government accounts, such as World Bank and the US Embassy. In December 2008, the company signed a partnership with Citibank enabling customers of both banks to make wire transfers, cash payments and trade transactions.
(See next weeks DrDinar blog post for part 2)
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This article may be reprinted online and offline as long
is this box remains and hyperlinked online. Written by
Darren Chabluk for http://DrDinar.com/blog
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