Asian Countries Keen to Ink Currency Swap Deals with Iran: MP
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The secretary of Iranian Parliament's Planning and Budget Commission announced that major Asian economies are willing to sign currency swap agreements with the Islamic Republic.
“In an Asian economic forum attended by countries which enjoy sustainable economies, most of the countries announced that there are no legal obstacles to signing a currency swap agreement with Iran,” said Esmail jalili.
The Iranian official also blamed lack of confidence as one of the major impediments to facilitate the process of transactions.
In early June, Hossein Ya’qoubi, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) for international affairs, told the Tasnim News Agency that CBI has practically rid the country’s foreign currency reserves of US dollar, replacing them with the United Arab Emirates’ dirham.
He commented on a dramatic reduction in the country’s dollar-based transactions in recent years, particularly after imposition of unilateral sanctions on Iran over its nuclear energy program.
He said the decision to replace dollar with dirham in the country’s foreign currency reserves was made to minimize the risk posed by the fluctuation in dollar rates.
Back in May, an economic commission at the Iranian parliament proposed a motion that, if approved, will totally eliminate the dollar and euro in the country’s monetary transactions with foreign states.