Valiollah Seif stressed that international banking transactions are not related to the JCPOA, adding “unfortunately, certain individuals hinder the correct implementation of measures by dispersing suspicions, particularly in regard to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).”
Seif went on to clear the misconception that the Central Bank of Iran would give away banking accounts and clients’ information to the FATF, saying “our agreement with the FATF is restricted to combating money-laundering and terrorist financing, and Iran itself decides what is defined as terrorism.”
The Guardian Council has recently approved a bill on combating terrorist financing in a bid to clear the path for increasing Iran’s credit status. Iran has voluntarily handed the anti-money laundering law to the International Money Fund (IMF), which according to Deputy Governor of the CBI Hamid Tehranfar “would alleviate many concerns of foreign banks for doing business with Iran.”
The FATF (Financial Action Task Force), an international group that monitors money laundering worldwide, called for a one-year suspension of some restrictions on Tehran on June 24, welcoming “Iran’s adoption of, and high-level political commitment to, an Action Plan to address its strategic (anti-money laundering and anti-terror financing) deficiencies.” Getting Iran off the FATF blacklist will provide a good opportunity for the country to normalize its banking industry.
Meanwhile, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in its latest report on countries’ risk index, reported Iran’s risk rating with one step improvement from 7 to 6. The countries’ risk rating determines investment attraction limit, the cost of credit insurance and foreign financing.
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