Page 38 - IRANRptAug20

Melli Bank Iran says it’s divested IRR17.4tn of non-financial assets
saying.
He reportedly added that opening bank branches in Chabahar would pave the way for further trade exchanges between Iran and Afghanistan.
Three Afghan banks are thought to have applied to operate in the FTZ. The smart money is on Ghazanfar Bank of Afghanistan becoming the first to open a branch in the port city.
Melli Bank Iran (MBI) has announced that it divested non-financial assets valued at IRR17.4tn ($102mn at the free market rate) during the last Persian year (ended March 9), Tehran’s Financial Tribune has reported. The Iranian banking system was in 2017 instructed by the Rouhani administration to offload all non-core assets as part of a wider sell-off of government-owned assets by semi-state-owned enterprises and banks. Among MBI’s major sell-offs during the previous Persian year was an 81% stake in large mineral company Madan Shekafan Tehran Co. It was purchased by a private buyer during a tender process.
However, several state-owned enterprises that have landed on the bank’s books over the years remain unsold and in liquidation and insolvent.
Last November, MBI failed to find a buyer for the National Development Investment Company, which it listed as having a value of €1.4bn. The business appears to have a level of debt that makes it unattractive to buyers. Other failed sales concern retail bank branches in Tehran and elsewhere. MBI is attempting to squeeze out branches on the high street that are close to one another.
Banks in Iran own IRR1 quadrillion ($23.8bn at the free market rate) in non-core assets earmarked for sale, according to local media reports.
8.2 ​Central Bank policy
Iran's central bank updates directive on carrying or retaining foreign currency in cash
The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has issued an updated directive dictating the amount of foreign currency in cash that people can retain or carry, LiT reported. ​According to the new directive, individuals can carry up to €10,000 or its equivalent in hard currency. The decree added that a person carrying or keeping more than this value in cash would need to have multiple documents showing they were entitled to do so. The move is the latest in a series of special measures brought in by the Iranian government to manage the free market, with the Iranian rial (IRR) hitting all-time lows against the dollar this week (by 16:30 Tehran time on June 25 it had recovered some ground to stand at IRR192,000 versus the USD, compared to the​ ​weakest ever rate of IRR205,000 seen on June 23​).
The updated central bank rules add that those who have more than €10,000 or its equivalent in hard currency have three months to either deposit their cash in a foreign currency bank account or sell it at an exchange bureau or credit institution. It remains unclear how this method will be policed or if fines will be levied on those who fail to comply.
According to the governor of the CBI, Abdolnaser Hemmati, some $280bn has been injected into the local foreign exchange market in the past 15 years to support the rial.
The regulations for taking hard currency in cash out of Iran have not been changed. There is a limit of €5,000 that applies to those travelling by air, whereas the limit is €2,000 for those travelling by land.
38​ IRAN Country Report August 2020 www.intellinews.com