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Iran taps sovereign wealth fund to help boost stock market trade

File photo shows a man passing by the main display in Tehran Stock Exchange.

The Iranian government has allowed tapping $200 million from its sovereign wealth fund for the purpose of investment in the local stock market where trade has plummeted sharply in recent months causing discontent among small investors.

In a Tuesday decree signed by Iran’s deputy president for economic affairs Mohammad Nahavadian, the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) was ordered to sell the funds within the next three weeks and deposit the proceeds into the Capital Market Stabilization Fund.

The decree also ordered the CBI to cancel all previous bans on involvement of state-owned institutions in stock market trading.

It also reiterated that Iran’s Interior Ministry should recognize purchase by foreign nationals of shares of companies registered in the local stock market as a form of foreign investment, thereby making those investors eligible to receive five-year residency permits.

The announcement comes amid efforts by the Iranian government to help boost trade in Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) where main index has fallen from historic highs seen over the summer.

TEDPIX was hovering around 1.179 million points on Tuesday, up 1.89% against the day before but still much lower than the 2-million milestone seen in August.

It is the first time Iran taps its sovereign wealth fund to help trade in the local stock market. The National Development Fund is mostly set aside for financing programs that could benefit the Iranian economy in the long-run.

The fund has also been tapped over the past years to respond to cases of emergency, including floods that hit Iran in March 2019 or at the start of the coronavirus crisis in the country in February 2020.


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