A forum built from inside the sector — not above it.
The leading regional convening on governance, risk, and compliance — founded in Iraq to elevate the standards of the financial sector and bring its decision-makers into one room.
The GRC Forum was founded by Hisham Khalid Abbas in his capacity as Chief Executive Officer of Bayt Al-Hikma for Training and Consulting (BHTC). It was created to give Iraq — and the wider region — a serious, annual venue dedicated entirely to governance, risk management, and compliance, the disciplines that quietly hold a financial system together.
The Forum brings together regulators, central bankers, commercial bank leadership, compliance officers, auditors, and international institutions for two days of frank conversation, technical sessions, and practical commitments. From its first edition in 2024, the intention has been simple: raise the standard of what is expected of a financial institution in Iraq, and create a permanent space where that standard is set openly.
Attended by the highest authorities in finance and economy.
Across its three editions, the Forum has drawn participation from the most senior figures in Iraq’s financial and economic landscape — among them ministers and senior officials, central bank leadership, chief executives and board members of leading Iraqi banks, regulators, and representatives of international financial institutions and development partners.
The result is the rare opportunity for the people who set the rules, the people who supervise them, and the people who must live by them to address the same questions in the same role.
Attended by CEOs and board members of Iraqi commercial banks, Central bank leadership and senior regulators, Heads of risk, compliance, audit, and AML, representatives of international financial institutions, government officials from finance and economy ministries.
Backed by the institutions that shape the sector.
Strategic Sponsors
Central Bank of Iraq
The Central Bank of Iraq, as the country’s monetary authority and supervisor of its banking system, has lent its sponsorship to the GRC Forum in recognition of its role in advancing governance and compliance standards across Iraqi financial institutions.
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit
GIZ, the German agency for international cooperation, has sponsored the GRC Forum as part of its long-standing engagement supporting institutional capacity-building and good governance in Iraq’s financial sector.
For information about future editions of the GRC Forum, sponsorship packages, institutional partnerships, or speaking proposals, please reach out directly. The Forum welcomes serious institutions committed to raising the standard of governance and compliance in the region.
