SWIFT awaits OK for Iran services

SWIFT announced on Monday that most Iranian banks will be able to reconnect to its financial-transactions system, a key to rekindling foreign trade, as soon as the economic sanctions against the country are lifted.  

Banks that were subject to sanctions specified in the nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 will automatically be able to reconnect "following the completion of our normal connection process, that is administrative and systems checks, connectivity and technical arrangements", Reuters has quoted SWIFT as saying in a statement.

The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) said in July that the country’s state-run banks will soon rejoin SWIFT once Iran's nuclear agreement with the world powers enters into effect.

Nevertheless, some Iranian banks are still believed to remain excluded under other sanctions.

SWIFT, or Society for the Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications, is a global supplier of secure messaging services, which is used by nearly every bank around the world to send payment messages that lead to the transfer of money across international borders. It operates service transmitting letters of credit, payments and securities transactions among 9,700 banks in 209 countries.

In early 2012, SWIFT announced that under pressure from the European Union, it had decided to discontinue communications services to Iranian banks and financial institutions that are subject to European sanctions. Accordingly, it blocked 30 Iranian banks from using its services, literally cutting off Iran from the global banking system.

Based on an agreement reached between Iran and the P5+1 in July, all economic and financial sanctions against Iran will be removed. In addition, all bans on Iran’s Central Bank, shipping, oil industry, and many other companies will be lifted.

Several Iranian private banks including Dey, Saman, Pasargad, and Parsian in addition to two state-run banks - Maskan and Keshavarzi - are currently connected to the SWIFT network.

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