Billions of Dollars, Gold in Mothballs

On June 4 and 5, a robbery took place from a Bank Melli Iran branch of Tehran from safe deposit boxes. 
As many as 162 out of 250 rented safe boxes were robbed; burglars fled to one of the neighboring countries but were apprehended by police and returned to Iran.
Abdolnasser Hemmati, a former chairman of the Central Bank of Iran, said, “Billions of dollars of these dormant assets could have been invested in the country to offset the negative impacts of sanctions. What is necessary here is the promotion of economic stability and predictability.”
The Persian daily Etemad published an interview with economist Morteza Afqah, on this matter. A translation of the interview follows: