Commission to Vet Banking Reform Bills by December

EghtesadOnline: The twin banking reform bills devised by the government are now being assessed in Majlis Economic Commission and will be ratified in open sessions by December, a member of the commission announced.

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05 September 2017

"The government sent us the bills a few weeks ago and Majlis Economic Commission is to hold intensive meetings to finalize the bills and send them to the parliament's open session for the lawmakers' approval," Seyyed Farid Mousavi was also quoted as saying by ICANA, the official news outlet of the parliament.

President Hassan Rouhani delivered the Banking Reform Bill and the Central Bank Bill to Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani on August 16.

The bills have had a rocky journey on their way to the parliament and underwent many reviews and revisions before they were approved by the Cabinet on July 23. The repeated delays had angered many lawmakers who threatened to ratify their own version of the reform agenda if the government continued its foot-dragging, Financial Tribune reported.

The member of the commission added that the structure of the banking system and the Central Bank of Iran, plus their operations and supervisory tools, will be assessed based on the successful experiences of other countries in their banking sectors and Iran's maturity in Islamic banking.

The Banking Reform Bill is the new blueprint expected to replace the current Usury-Free Banking Law. The last amendments to the Usury-Free Banking Law were made in 1983 while the law itself specifies that upgrades are needed every five years.

"We have gathered experts' opinions regarding the bills through many meetings to present them to the banking system and the economic apparatus," Mousavi said.

However, he added that this is only the first step toward reforming the banking system and other banking issues also need to be resolved.

Mousavi noted that the banking task force affiliated with the commission convened meetings from last Tuesday in Mashhad to assess the twin bills.

The Banking Reform Bill outlines the procedures for banks and non-bank credit institutions to follow for obtaining a license from CBI. It explains all banking operations and services, notifies regulations for the establishment of foreign bank branches and sets limits on their investments.

Other articles put in place a professional set of criteria for appointing new top executives and board members, and makes provision for setting up internal risk and auditing committees while detailing lending and capital adequacy rules.

On the other hand, the Central Bank Bill, whose law was first passed in 1972, aims to update banking regulations. Improving the independence of CBI, enhancing monetary policymaking and enforcing CBI’s supervision over the money market are among its key goals.