Syria Today | Syrian-Iranian bank launched

Syrian-Iranian bank launched

The Syrian government has given the green light to a joint Syrian-Iranian commercial bank, it was announced on February 24.

The new Syrian-Iranian bank, to be called Banki, is a joint venture between the Commercial Bank of Syria, Iran’s Bank Saderat and a number of corporations from both sides. The new bank will be launched with a capital of SYP 1.5bn (USD 32m) and will focus on trade financing and boosting exports between the two countries.

“We need someone to finance bilateral trade, so why not?” Syria’s Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdullah al-Dardari previously said of the venture. “There is plenty of bilateral trade and we are now negotiating a free trade agreement with Iran.”

Iranian investments in Syria total some SYP 70.5bn (USD 1.5bn). Trade volume between the two countries currently stands at SYP 1.12bn (USD 240m).

On the same day, the government also approved the establishment of a fund for export development. The fund will be linked directly to the Ministry of Economy and Trade and will work to increase private and public exports.