Iran and Russia rolled out the second phase of their Shetab-Mir payment network integration, strengthening financial ties between the two nations, ISNA reported on May 13.

The announcement was made during a ceremony at the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) in Tehran, attended by senior officials and diplomats from both countries after several months of technical integration meetings between the two sides.

This new phase enables NFC-based mobile payments for Russian bank cardholders in Iran, bringing Iran closer to global payment standards, something it has lacked the ability to in recent years due to US sanctions.

CBI Governor Mohammad Reza Farzin stressed that “monetary and banking cooperation with neighbouring nations is a priority,” as the country seeks to expand regional collaboration.

He added that Iran’s monetary projects are independent of indirect talks with the United States, which resumed in Muscat on May 11 to discuss Iran's nuclear programme and sanctions.

“Through the SEPAM system, we can connect with any country’s banking messaging platform without relying on SWIFT,” Farzin said.

The CBI governor also noted Iran’s increasing diplomatic efforts with BRICS members, particularly Russia, to strengthen economic and cultural ties.

He stressed the significance of “robust monetary and banking linkages” for thriving trade relationships. He added that Iran’s application to join the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) will be announced at the next NDB assembly.

The Shetab-Mir project, launched in phases, is part of broader cooperation aimed at bypassing the SWIFT network. Farzin explained that eliminating SWIFT for Iran-Russia transactions has helped strengthen ties with major Russian banks. Direct financial channels and a monetary agreement between the two countries followed.

The first phase of integration, unveiled in November 2024, allowed Iranian tourists to withdraw rubles from Russian ATMs. Farzin confirmed that four Iranian banks have adopted the system, with more expected to join soon.

Iran’s Ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, expressed that the connection would benefit over 10,000 Iranian students in Russia. He confirmed that specialised banking groups are working to resolve remaining hurdles and expedite the process this year. Bnm IntelliNews could not verify the claim by the Iranian officials.

Earlier on July 6, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), Mohammad Reza Farzin, announced that that the two countries were set to use their national currencies in trade and connect ATM networks by August.

In the past, Iran had a similar swap deal with Turkey, which was seemingly cancelled following the re-imposition of sanctions on Iran in 2018.

In 2023, the two central banks signed a significant agreement to establish banking ties, as both are disconnected from international interbank messaging systems such as SWIFT.

Earlier that year, Iran’s SEPAM system was linked to Russia’s Financial Message Transfer System (SFPS), allowing some banks to start offering transactions to Iran or open letters of credit.