A month after the Central Bank of Iraq’s classification, “small influencers” are excluded from the market.
A month after the Central Bank of Iraq’s classification, “small influencers” are excluded from the market.
2025-12-19 00:50
Baghdad – Shafaq News
More than a month after the Central Bank of Iraq classified social media celebrities and influencers as high-risk to the banking sector, and warned Iraqi banks against dealing with them to limit money laundering and terrorism financing, some content creators from this segment see a need to reconsider the decision, which they consider correct but too harsh, especially on the “small” ones, which may push them away from this field.
Content creator Adnan Ibrahim, in an exclusive interview with Shafaq News Agency, confirms that “the Central Bank’s measures, which it has obligated banks and financial institutions to implement, are necessary to regulate the digital advertising market and protect the national economy, especially with large sums of money entering the accounts of some individuals without a clear commercial framework.” However, at the same time, “they put pressure on small content creators, because the implementation of these measures came in a strict manner and was not done in stages, which will push some of them to leave this market.”
An official at the Media and Communications Authority indicated that measures to combat low-quality content have revealed the existence of more than 11,000 content creators, included in the Central Bank’s latest classification, which makes controlling and regulating influencer accounts necessary to confront money laundering and other activities.
Commenting on the issue, economist Mustafa Akram Hantoush says, “The trend of the younger generation’s work ideas being directed towards live streaming on social media to earn profits puts us in front of a big problem, as we will find ourselves facing a generation that does not work.”
He adds to Shafaq News Agency, “The Central Bank’s procedures that call on influencers to open a bank account through which they can obtain funds through meaningful content are positive procedures, to know the profits that influencers obtain and know their source and that they are subject to tax.”
Hantoush points out that “most countries in the region, including Kuwait, the UAE and others, have similar decisions and take important measures regarding content that claims to generate high profits, and they have procedures related to money laundering and illicit and unjustified acquisition,” noting that “Iraq is seeking to take similar measures by inviting influencers on websites to open bank accounts through which financial transfers are received for meaningful content, and not for inappropriate broadcasting.”
If the owners of low-quality content are making a lot of money, then it is necessary to highlight the negative side of this issue, as Lahntoush sees it, and to take strict legal action against it.
The Central Bank’s procedures include obligating banks and financial institutions to consider influencers as high-risk clients and adopt special classification systems for them, with continuous updating of their data, the nature of their activity and sources of income, in addition to auditing the advertising, sponsorship and marketing contracts concluded between them and the companies or funding entities, to verify the identity of the sponsoring entity, the size of the support amounts, and obtaining account statements or financial data received from social media platforms and digital platforms that pay influencers.
It also includes comparing those figures with bank account activity, as well as obligating influencers to link their bank accounts to official accounts and pages on social media platforms and to inform the bank of any changes in names or digital accounts.
Legal expert Qatada Saleh Finjan confirms, “There are legal justifications that allow the bank to issue certain statements.”
In a special statement to Shafaq News Agency, he explains that “the Iraqi banking system operates within legal frameworks, the most important of which are the Central Bank of Iraq Law No. (56) of 2004, which is the supreme regulator of banking operations, and the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law No. (39) of 2015, which is the most influential law in this context.”
He adds that “based on these laws, it is the bank’s right, indeed its legal duty, to take measures that may include issuing a notification or statement to the client or the relevant authorities, if the bank suspects that an incoming or outgoing transfer may be related to illegal activities such as money laundering, corruption, terrorist financing, or fraud, because the law requires it to conduct enhanced due diligence and request additional information and documents from the client that prove the source of the funds and the purpose of the transfer. This applies to influential people, including political figures and their relatives and those close to them, as they are considered more vulnerable to the risks of corruption and money laundering.”
Finjan confirms that “the legal procedures in this context consist of reporting suspicious transactions if the suspicions are confirmed. The bank must inform the Iraqi Financial Unit (the anti-money laundering authority) confidentially, and may receive instructions to suspend or freeze the transfer temporarily, and refuse to complete the transaction if the client does not provide sufficient documents, or if the transaction involves a high risk that cannot be mitigated. The bank has the right to refuse to open the account or make the transfer legally.”
He points out that if the name of the client or beneficiary is listed on sanctions lists such as the United Nations lists, the US Treasury Department list, or the official Iraqi list, then the bank is legally required to freeze the funds, not execute the transfer, and inform the relevant authorities,” noting that “the Central Bank’s internal policy refuses to deal with transactions that do not comply with compliance policies or pose a risk to the bank’s reputation, and that banks’ dealings with social media influencers or so-called politically exposed persons (PEPs) involve strict scrutiny under the Anti-Money Laundering Law and Central Bank instructions.”
He explains that through this, the client is identified and defined as a “politically exposed person,” and the source of wealth, income, and specific funds in each large or unusual transaction is verified according to the bank’s laws to understand the nature of economic relationships, the purpose of the account and transfers, and the account is continuously monitored, provided that senior management approves opening accounts for these people and reports any suspicious transaction.
The legal expert also notes that “the bank has the right not to deliver the transfer to these people, but under conditions, the most prominent of which is that the refusal is based on legal reasons such as suspicion of money laundering, insufficient documents, or the presence of a name on sanctions lists. If the refusal to deliver the transfer is arbitrary or discriminatory and without a legal reason, then the bank’s action is considered illegal and exposes it to accountability before the Central Bank of Iraq or the judiciary.”
He affirms that “the proper procedure for banks is to request additional documents from the customer, and if the customer does not provide them, the bank can refuse the transaction and notify the customer of the reason without disclosing confidential reporting details to regulatory authorities.”
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