Warka Bank: depositor run, delisting and Central Bank custodianship (from 2010 to 2013)
Warka Bank for Investment & Finance, founded in 1999 by chairman Saad S. Al-Bunia and once Iraq's largest private bank with around 120 to 150 branches, suffered a severe depositor run from mid-2010 after rumours of insolvency spread; industry-wide private-bank deposit outflows exceeded $1.6bn. The Central Bank of Iraq required Warka to raise its capital to at least IQD 100bn in 2011; when it could not, the Ministry of Trade delisted it from the Iraq Stock Exchange on 15 August 2011, seizing its shares. In March 2012 the central bank placed Warka under formal custodianship, with Deputy Governor Mudher Kasim publicly attributing the crisis to weak collateral behind the bank's loan book; Al-Bunia rejected this account, describing a politically motivated campaign against a leading Sunni-owned bank. Litigation followed, including a suit by Asiacell seeking return of IQD 29.3bn in deposits. The Financial Services Court ultimately ruled in Warka's favour on 26 May 2013, and the central bank lifted custodianship on 25 August 2013. No court, Integrity Commission or prosecutorial finding of fraud against Warka or Al-Bunia personally is on record.
- Period
- From 2010 to August 2013
- Sector
- Banking, currency and dollar auctionPrivate bank failure and regulatory dispute
- Kind of case
- Administrative action
- Jurisdiction
- Federal Iraq
How the money moved, according to the sources
Disputed: the Central Bank of Iraq's official framing was a liquidity or solvency failure from weak-collateral lending; Warka's ownership and an academic case study instead framed it as a confidence panic triggered by government or media action, not a proven fraud.
What happened
Custodianship lifted in 2013 following a court ruling favourable to the bank; resolved as a regulatory or civil dispute rather than a proven criminal fraud case.
Open questions
- No Integrity Commission finding, indictment or court verdict establishing fraud or embezzlement is on record; a Zakho University case study found Warka's 2008 to 2011 financial indicators did not show an 'obvious collapse' relative to peer banks, supporting the confidence-panic reading over a proven-fraud one.
People and companies
| Name | Role in the case | Legal status | Detail | As of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warka Bank for Investment & Finance مصرف الوركاء للاستثمار والتمويل | Then-Iraq's largest private bank | Disciplined by an official body | Delisted from the Iraq Stock Exchange 15 August 2011 (shares seized by the Ministry of Trade) after failing a Central Bank-mandated capital increase; placed under Central Bank of Iraq custodianship March 2012; custodianship lifted 25 August 2013 after the Financial Services Court ruled in the bank's favour (26 May 2013). No OFAC, FinCEN or later action on the central bank's list of barred banks against it is on record as of September 2026. | 28 September 2026 |
| Saad S. Al-Bunia | Founder and chairman, Warka Bank (about 56% shareholder) | Accused by an official body | The Central Bank's deputy governor publicly blamed the Warka Bank's 2010 crisis on lending against weak collateral under his chairmanship (quoted by Iraq Business News, 2012). He denied wrongdoing and called it a politically motivated campaign against a leading Sunni-owned private bank. No criminal charge, indictment or court finding is on record. | 30 September 2026 |
Sources
- MEEDAugust 2011Press reportTier D
Iraqi bank delisted from stock exchange
Originala first for the ISX
- Iraq Business News29 March 2012Press reportTier D
Warka Bank Saga Shows Iraq Political, Business Tensions
OriginalThe bank expanded by giving loans, it appeared collateral for these loans was weak
- Iraq Business News2 September 2013Press reportTier D
CBI 'Lifts Custody' over Warka Bank
OriginalThis decision comes in accordance with the decision issued by the court appeal in favor of Warka Bank for Investment and Finance