Shafaq News- Baghdad

Several figures are competing for Iraq’s finance minister post in the anticipated government formation, political sources told Shafaq News on Monday, adding that current Finance Minister Taif Sami could remain in office as negotiations continue among the Shiite Coordination Framework (CF) over cabinet portfolios.

The Prime Minister-designate, Ali Al-Zaidi, asked CF parties to grant him direct authority over the finance and interior ministries, allowing him to personally select qualified candidates to lead the two portfolios, the sources revealed. The request came after Al-Hikma (Wisdom) Movement secured the finance ministry under ongoing political agreements.

According to the sources, Mohammed Sahib Al-Darraji is currently viewed as the leading candidate for the finance ministry, while Rafidain Bank Director General Ali Karim Hussein has also been proposed for the position.

The nomination of Hussein comes amid previous controversy surrounding allegations linked to Rafidain Bank, Iraq’s largest state-owned bank. Finance Minister Taif Sami had earlier ordered the suspension of the bank’s director and more than 20 officials and employees over suspicions related to alleged manipulation in US dollar sales at Baghdad International Airport, as well as other administrative and financial violations. Later, she reversed the suspension order and reinstated the employees under investigation, according to an official document. Information circulating at the time suggested that political pressure contributed to settling the case and closing the investigation without recommendations for penalties against those accused.

One source told Shafaq News that additional allegations linked to Rafidain Bank have circulated, including suspicions of money laundering, waste, and mismanagement.

In August 2025, US Congressman Joe Wilson accused Rafidain Bank, under Hussein’s management, of conducting financial transactions with Yemen’s Houthi movement and warned that the issue could lead to the suspension of US financial support for Iraq.

The bank’s branch in Abu Dhabi was also found to have committed financial and administrative violations, according to the sources, while indicators of mismanagement prompted the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates to impose what were described as large financial penalties on the branch.