Another $10bn Iranian frozen asset to be released soon

Majid Reza Hariri, who chairs Iran-China Joint Chamber of Commerce, said on Wednesday that the funds that are going to be unfrozen will be worth $10 billion.

Hariri said in a post on the X platform that there are “rumors about the release of another $10 billion” without elaborating on the country or countries where they are kept.

The remarks came hours after media reports said the United States had cleared the way for the transfer of some $6 billion worth of Iranian funds from Switzerland to Qatar where the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) can access them for purchase of non-sanctioned goods.

The funds being released to six bank accounts in Qatar had remained inaccessible in South Korea for nearly five years because of US sanctions and Iran has won their release under a prisoner exchange deal with the US.

Iranian officials indicated last month after reports about release of funds in South Korea that Tehran has no more blocked funds in other countries.

A senior diplomat in the Iranian foreign ministry said in late August that Tehran can now access tens of billions of its funds in banks in countries like Iraq and China.

Iran has more than $10 billion worth of funds in the Trade bank of Iraq where they have been deposited to settle payments related to imports of natural gas and electricity from Iran.

Hariri said the release of foreign funds would certainly impact the situation of the currency markets in Iran in the coming days, adding that they will give the CBI more leverage to control the prices in the market.