The governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) says talks are advancing to restore banking relationships to allow the Islamic republic to write letter of credit (L/C) business on a normal basis.

Iran's ability to write conventional US dollar and euro L/C transactions has been all but stopped by international sanctions which may now be lifted as Tehran seeks to reassure the world that its nuclear ambitions are peaceful.

Resume cooperation

Governor of the CBI, Valiollah Seif, said that the bank plans to resume cooperation with major banks in the Gulf and also open L/Cs for business transactions with other countries.

"We will cooperate with the banks of the neighbouring countries, including Oman, in a bid to form a wider network," the governor told delegates at an 8 March 2013 meeting with producers of raw materials for the pharmaceuticals industry in Tehran.

L/Cs needed

Seif stressed the need for L/Cs to facilitate trade and said the CBI would put more time and energy into opening L/Cs in the future.

The governor said seven European banks have proposed cooperation with Iranian banks, one Swiss bank has already started operations in Iran and three Japanese banks have expressed interest in working more closely with entities in the Islamic republic.

This article represents the views of the author and not necessarily those of the ICC or any of the other partners in DC-PRO.