Iran, Russia link banking systems, allowing Iranian bank cards in Russia to bypass sanctions

Iranian bank cards can now be used in Russia, state television reported, as the two countries linked their banking systems in the latest bid to counteract sanctions.

Iranian banks have been excluded since 2018 from the SWIFT international financial messaging service, which governs the vast majority of transactions worldwide.

The move is part of a raft of sanctions that were re-imposed on Iran after the United States withdrew from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal.

Iranian bank cards can now be used in Russia, state television channel IRINN said on Monday, showing the withdrawal of money using an Iranian bank card from an ATM in Russia.

The operation was made possible by connecting Iran’s interbank network Shetab to its Russian equivalent Mir, the channel said.

Iranians can currently withdraw money in Russia, and will in the future be able to use their cards to pay for in-store purchases, it added.

“The plan is also going to be implemented in other countries that have a wide range of financial and social interactions with Iran, for example Iraq, Afghanistan and Turkey,” it said.

Both Iran and Russia have sought to counteract the effects of sanctions on their economies.

Since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Moscow has faced mounting sanctions, and its ties with Tehran have grown closer in parallel.

Ukraine and its Western allies have since the start of the conflict accused Iran of supplying Russia with both drones and missiles for use in the war.

Tehran and Moscow signed an agreement in June to strengthen their cooperation in the banking sector.

In the future, Russians will also be able to use their bank cards in Iran, IRINN said, without specifying when.

Russia has been pushing for the creation of an international payment platform as an alternative to the SWIFT service, from which key Russian banks have also been excluded since 2022.