VTB Bank of Russia Opens Tehran Office

Russia’s second-largest bank VTB has opened a representative office in Iran, an Iranian official said on Wednesday, as Moscow and Tehran, both restrained by western sanctions, seek to improve trade and transaction capabilities.
State-owned VTB plunged to a $7.7-billion loss last year as western sanctions particularly targeted Russia’s financial sector. The lender is one of many key Russian banks now blocked from the SWIFT international financial messaging service, Reuters reported.
State-owned VTB, which has been subject to sweeping western sanctions since late February, has thus become the first lender to provide banking services to Iran, a country that has been under international restrictions for decades.   
The bank launched a new service allowing both individuals and businesses to transfer money to and from Iran, the lender said back in December.