Issue 85 | April 2019 | INSTEX, meet STFI

INSTEX, meet STFI: Iran’s finance chiefs make a constructive start to the New Year. There has been universal frustration with the pace of European progress to rebuild the financial relationships that were damaged by the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal. But the Iranian New Year kicked off with a more positive tone. The Special Trade and Finance Institute (SFTI), set up by the Central Bank of Iran, mirrors Europe’s own Special Purpose Vehicle for facilitating Iran-Europe trade. Practical steps remain for both sides to persuade businesses to make use of it. Iran marked the New Year with a bold statement of intent for its engagement with the global economy. The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) officially established a payments mechanism to match and work with the Europe Union’s Special Purpose Vehicle for facilitating cross-border payments. The new mechanism, labelled the Special Trade and Finance Institute (STFI) was announced on the last working day of the Iranian cal