Iraqi Middle East Investment Bank
This page sets out what the record shows about Iraqi Middle East Investment Bank. It names the owners and managers, gives the dollars the bank bought from the Central Bank in the years whose records survive, lists the requests that the Central Bank refused and describes the action that regulators took against the bank.
مصرف الشرق الأوسط العراقي للاستثمار
Name, licence and status
- Name in English
- Iraqi Middle East Investment Bank
- Name in Arabic
- مصرف الشرق الأوسط العراقي للاستثمار
- Type
- Private commercial bank
- Iraq Stock Exchange ticker
- BIME
- Established
- 7 July 1993
- Licence
- No. ص/10/3/942/5 of 28 September 1993
- Regulatory measures
- Barred from dollar dealing by the Central Bank (November 2022)
- Website
- www.imeib.com
- Securities Commission page
- Iraq Securities Commissionisc.gov.iq
Ownership
The corporate holders in the record are مصرف القابض الاسلامي للتمويل والاستثمار with 25.73%, مصرف الانصاري الاسلامي للإستثمار والتمويل with 25.73% and شركة مصرف عبر العراق للإستثمار with 1.98%.
Political or armed-group links reported by sources
- 51.46% owned (2021) by Al-Qabidh and Al-Ansari; reported controlled by Ali Ghulam (designated by OFAC)According to: Annual report 2021; The National/The Wall Street JournalTier BTier DIraqi Middle East Investment BankThe NationalIran Watch (Wisconsin Project) summarising the Wall Street Journal
Owners and managers
Dollars bought from the Central Bank
Dollars bought from the Central Bank, by year
In billions of dollars. Verified rows of the Central Bank's daily records.
| Year | Dollars bought | Cash | Transfers abroad | Share of the year's named sales | Refused | Value of the price gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | $35m | $0 | $35m | 13.0% | Not stated | $612,500 |
| 2013 | $864m | $90.8m | $773.2m | 1.8% | $176m | $34m |
| 2014 | $383m | $25.2m | $357.8m | 1.1% | $71.1m | $9.8m |
| 2015 | $2.7bn | $63.3m | $2.6bn | 8.4% | $67.1m | $135.4m |
| 2016 | $1.7bn | $486.9m | $1.2bn | 6.5% | Not stated | $116.5m |
| 2017 | $1.2bn | $537.9m | $616.9m | 5.8% | Not stated | $50.7m |
| 2018 | $10m | $0 | $10m | 6.3% | Not stated | $317,331 |
| 2019 | $802.3m | $1.6m | $800.8m | 7.0% | Not stated | $4.5m |
| 2020 | $6m | $0 | $6m | 3.3% | Not stated | $195,122 |
| Total | $7.7bn | $1.2bn | $6.5bn | $314.3m | $351.9m |
Share of the year's named sales: the bank's part of all the dollars that the surviving records attribute to a named bank in that year.
Refused: the requests that the Central Bank's committee turned down. Its minutes survive only from January 2013 to February 2015. An empty cell means that no minutes survive for that year. The yearly figures come from the yearly ledger. The figure at the top of the page comes from the committee's minutes. The two can differ.
What the Central Bank refused
From January 2013 to February 2015 the Central Bank's committee recorded, day by day, which requests for dollars it turned down and why. Its minutes record 57 occasions on which the committee refused all or part of a request by this bank. On those occasions the bank asked for $712.6 million, and $314.3 million of it was refused.
The largest refusals
| Date | Asked for | Refused | The reason, as read from the scanned minutes | Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| date unreadable | $19.7m | $19.7m | حسب مذكرة الصيرفة المرقمة 1570 في | Penalty on, or suspension of, the bank |
| date unreadable | $18.7m | $18.7m | الاغراض تدقيقية | Held for audit |
| 1 March 2014 | $15.9m | $15.9m | لعدم وجود موافقة الصيرفة على المدير | Missing or defective documents |
| 25 January 2015 | $19.7m | $14.6m | ستبعاد !ت1 وت2) لاغراض تدقيقية | Held for audit |
| 17 April 2014 | $14.1m | $14.1m | بموجب مذكرة الصيرفة المرقمة 1570/2/9 فى 2014/4/16 | Penalty on, or suspension of, the bank |
| date unreadable | $14m | $14m | 2014/4/16 13.961.000 ثصيرفة المرقمة 1570 في | Other |
| date unreadable | $19.7m | $13.5m | استبعاد !تاوت2) لاغراض تدقيقية | Held for audit |
| date unreadable | $18.7m | $12.2m | لاغراض تدقيقية | Held for audit |
| 9 April 2013 | $9.9m | $9.9m | لاغراض تدقيقية تتعلق بالزبون | Held for audit |
| 2 April 2013 | $9.6m | $9.6m | اختلاف نشاط الزبون التجاري | Company's activity does not match; Name or data do not match |
| 3 April 2013 | $8.3m | $8.3m | لاغراض تدقيقية تتعلق بالزبون | Held for audit |
| date unreadable | $13.4m | $8.1m | لاغراض تدقيقية | Held for audit |
The reasons were read from scanned pages of the Central Bank's minutes, the reading may contain errors, and the scanned page is the authority. Each reason is given in Arabic. Where a reason is marked “punctuation adjusted”, only its punctuation was changed. The category is ours.
Enforcement actions
- 3 November 2022Central Bank of Iraq (following US Treasury/Federal Reserve Bank of New York concerns, according to media reports)Barred from the currency window and from dealing in dollars
Against: Al-Qabidh Islamic Bank; Asia Al-Iraq Islamic Bank; Al-Ansari Islamic Bank; Iraqi Middle East Investment Bank
The Central Bank's list gives the effective date as 3 November 2022 for all 4 banks.
Current position: Listed as of 4 February 2024
Original
Sources
- Iraq Stock ExchangeAccessed 25 September 2026Tier BISX company profiles (companyprofile.html) for 49 listed banks: establishing date, listing date, capital, managing director
e.g. BHAM مصرف حمورابي: تاريخ التأسيس 26/08/2020؛ تاريخ الإدراج 04/08/2024 | BTRI مصرف عبر العراق للاستثمار: تاريخ التأسيس 21/05/2006 | BLAD مصرف العطاء الاسلامي: تاريخ التأسيس 06/07/2006 | BBAY مصرف بابل: المدير المفوض احمد عباس احمد / الوصي
- Iraq Securities CommissionAccessed 25 September 2026 (the page does not show the dates of disclosure)Tier BIraq Securities Commission (هيأة الأوراق المالية) listed-company pages: 'النسب المؤثرة' (significant shareholdings) and 'أعضاء مجلس الإدارة' (board) for banks
مصرف الاتحاد العراقي ... النسب المؤثرة: 1 عقيل مفتن خفيف البيضاني 13% ... 3 محمد مفتن خفيف البيضاني 13% | أعضاء مجلس الإدارة: عبد الكريم ابراهيم علي رئيس مجلس الادارة ...
Translation: Union Bank of Iraq ... Significant holdings: Aqeel Meften Khafeef al-Baidhani 13%; Mohammed Meften Khafeef al-Baidhani 13% | Board: Abdul Kareem Ibrahim Ali, chairman ...
- Iran Watch (Wisconsin Project) summarising the Wall Street Journal8 September 2024Tier DIraqi Banks Used U.S.-Created System to Funnel Funds to Iran (WSJ, David S. Cloud), summary
A subsequent investigation by the Federal Reserve revealed that more than 24 Iraqi banks, including three operated by prominent financier Ali Ghulam (Iraqi Middle East Investment Bank, Al Ansari Islamic Bank, and Al Qabidh Islamic Bank), were involved in suspicious transfers. All of the banks have been banned from conducting transactions in dollars.
Original - The National5 December 2025Tier DIraqi tycoon to fight against US sanctions from London base
OriginalHe took control of Middle East Investment Bank in 2014 and also controls Al Ansari Bank and Al Qabidh Bank. ... Mr Ghulam's lawyers said he "denies ever knowingly engaging in any of the activities alleged by the US Treasury" ... Accounts show an individual named Abdulmunem Mahdi Saleh Al Salawi owned 51 per cent of the… Read the rest
shares and Mr Ghulam held the rest. Mr Al Salawi, 58, is a director and shareholder of Al Arabiya Islamic Bank ... Their client "does not have any role at or interest in Al Arabiya Islamic Bank" - Central Bank of IraqAccessed 25 September 2026Tier Bالمصارف الاهلية المحلية (Private local banks: licence numbers/dates, managers, status marks)
الأقليم التجاري للاستثمار والتمويل ( اميرالد سابقا ) ... 408/3/9 2007/3/1 | الهدى ( ممنوع من التعامل بالدولار ) ... 136/3/9 2008/1/14 | مصرف بابل ( تصفية ) ( ممنوع من التعامل بالدولار ) ... المصفي، د.أحمد عباس أحمد | دار السلام للأستثمار ( حراسة قضائية ) | الشمال للتمويل والاستثمار ( وصاية ) | الطيف الإسلامي للإستثمار… Read the rest
والتمويل ( وصاية )( ممنوع من التعامل بالدولار ) | المال الإسلامي للإستثمار ( ممنوع من التعامل بالدولار ) ... 845/3/9 في 2018/12/9(punctuation adjusted)Translation: Region Trade Bank for Investment & Finance (formerly Emerald) ... licence 408/3/9 of 1 Mar 2007 | Al-Huda (barred from USD dealing) ... licence 136/3/9 of 14 Jan 2008 | Babylon Bank (liquidation) (barred from USD) ... liquidator Dr Ahmed Abbas Ahmed | Dar Es Salaam (judicial receivership) | North Bank (guardianship) | Al-Taif Islamic (guardianship)(barred from USD) | Al-Mal Islamic (barred from USD) ... licence 845/3/9 of 9 Dec 2018
Original - Shafaq News19 November 2022Tier D"علي غلام" يؤكد براءته من "النصب والاحتيال": كانت محاولة لـ"الابتزاز"
تمكنت من إلقاء القبض على مدير مصرف الشرق الأوسط المتهم (علي محمد غلام) اثناء قدومة الى مطار بغداد والمطلوب وفق أحكام المادة 456 (النصب والاحتيال) من قانون العقوبات العراقي ... ورجل الأعمال علي غلام هو مدير لثلاثة مصارف هي (الانصاري والقابض والشرق الأوسط)، التي أوقف البنك المركزي التعامل بالدولار معها.
Translation: [Interior Ministry:] airport passport units arrested the director of Middle East Bank, the accused (Ali Mohammed Ghulam), wanted under Article 456 (fraud) of the Penal Code ... Ali Ghulam is director of three banks (Al-Ansari, Al-Qabidh and Middle East), with which the CBI stopped dollar dealings.
Original - Central Bank of Iraq23 October 2025Tier Aالنشرة الإحصائية السنوية / Annual Statistical Bulletin (2024 data; PDF created 23 Oct 2025), banks' establishment year, total assets, paid-up capital (pages 116 to 117) and ISX listing table (p.113)
Region Trade Bank for Investment 2007 1,051,981 300,000 مصرف الاقليم التجاري( اميرالد) | AL-Huda Bank 2008 412,604 250,000 | Erbil Bank 2010 | International Development Bank 2011 | Hammurabi Commercial Bank 2020 | Ur Islamic Bank 2018 334,815 250,000
Original - Iraqi Middle East Investment BankReport for 2021 (the auditors' report is dated 27 June 2022)Tier Bالتقرير السنوي لسنة 2021، مصرف الشرق الأوسط العراقي للاستثمار (Iraqi Middle East Investment Bank, Board report and audited statements 2021), p.85 shareholders ≥5% and 1 to 5%
أ. أسماء المساهمين الذين يملكون 5% فاكثر من رأس مال المصرف المدفوع ... مصرف القابض الاسلامي للتمويل والاستثمار 64.325.000.000 | مصرف الانصاري الاسلامي للإستثمار والتمويل 64.325.000.000 | ب. ... من 1% الى أقل من 5% ... شركة مصرف عبر العراق للإستثمار 4.938.055.129 ... مجيد حميد علي الحافظ 10.878.265.600 (punctuation adjusted)
Translation: (a) Shareholders owning 5% or more of paid-up capital: Al-Qabidh Islamic Bank for Finance and Investment 64,325,000,000 shares; Al-Ansari Islamic Bank for Investment and Finance 64,325,000,000 shares | (b) 1% to under 5%: ... Trans Iraq Bank for Investment 4,938,055,129 ... Majid Hamid Ali al-Hafidh 10,878,265,600
Original