The Central Bank of Iran has laid down three proposals to the visiting Italian delegation for expanding bilateral monetary ties.
According to a statement released by the CBI, Akbar Komijani, vice governor of the bank, expressed hope that enhanced relations between Iran and Italy would lead to stronger banking cooperation.
The three proposals put forward by Komijani aim to increase financial cooperation between CBI and sectors of the Italian economy in a post-sanctions era: The first one states that a committee comprised of officials from the Iranian central bank and Bank of Italy and the Italian insurance company SACE would facilitate bilateral inter-banking relations, previously stymied by EU sanctions.
The second offer calls for increased presence of Iranian banks–and especially private lenders in Italy. Since Bank Sepah is the only Iranian bank with a branch in Rome, more branches of the bank in Italy were envisaged.
In his third initiative, Komijani called for strengthening ties in the area of joint investment projects and particularly in areas that would enhance Iranian exports to Italy.
During the meeting with Komijani, Federica Guidi, Italy’s minister of economic development, referred to the long and successful history of Iran-Italy relations and asked for continued ties between the two nations. She laid emphasis on tapping potentials being made available by sanctions relief.
Iran and major world powers clinched a historic agreement on July 14 to lift economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for limits on the country’s nuclear energy program. The Italian delegation is part of a flurry of western business dispatches traveling to Iran in recent days to capture business opportunities in Iran once the sanctions are eased.
