The ceiling for payment via debit cards has been limited to 500 million rials ($15,300 at market exchange rate) by the Central Bank of Iran, apparently to counter rising financial crime. A directive issued by the CBI on Monday effective from April 9, restricted the daily debit card transaction amount. The CBI stated the reason behind the decision to be the “hazards of high value bank card transactions,” as allowing the transfer of large sums without accurate identification can create the perfect environment for criminals, conmen and organized crime. Such groups or individuals can easily hide their financial transactions in the midst of commercial and smaller ones. Only 0.07 percent of all debit card transactions are more than the set sum. “These transactions can easily be carried out in Satna, interbank transfer system, and Checkavak, e-check management system,” which have a stricter verification process. “Some complaints were filed regarding the misuse of debit cards, prompting the central bank to issue the directive in order to eliminate the potential for such crimes,” Abdolmahdi Arjmandnejad, director of the CBI’s anti-money laundry unit, told the press on Monday.
