BEIRUT: Iran gave permission to money exchange offices on Saturday to start importing foreign currency banknotes, state media reported, in an apparent attempt to stop the rial from plunging to a new low against the dollar.
Iran’s currency has lost about two-thirds of its value this year, hitting a record low last week of 150,000 rial to the US dollar. It recovered to trade at 130,000 per dollar on Saturday in unofficial trade, according to the Bonbast.com currency market website.
The rial has been hit by a weak economy, financial difficulties at local banks and strong demand for safe-haven dollars among Iranians.
Many Iranians fear Washington’s pulling out of a 2015 nuclear deal and renewed US sanctions will cut into Iran’s exports of oil and other goods, which would likely put further pressure on the rial.
A set of US sanctions targeting Iran’s oil industry is due to take effect in November.
“Currency exchange offices have been given permission to import currency into the country and they can import currency in the form of bills,” central bank governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).
Currency exchange offices will also be allowed to import gold, the head of the Iranian Parliament’s economic committee, Mohammad Reza Pourebrahimi, said on Saturday, according to the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA). Imports of both gold and foreign currency by exchange offices were previously forbidden, he said.
“In the past, this issue was forbidden and any kind of import would be considered contraband,” Pourebrahimi said.
Hemmati, who was appointed central bank governor in July
in an ongoing shakeup of senior Iranian economic officials, made no mention of the decision on gold imports during his comments.
Rial’s plunge forces Iran to open door to foreign money
Rial’s plunge forces Iran to open door to foreign money
Saudi stock market opens its doors to foreign investors
RIYADH: Foreigners will be able to invest directly in Saudi Arabia’s stock market from Feb. 1, the Kingdom’s Capital Market Authority has announced.
The CMA’s board has approved a regulatory change which will mean the capital market, across all its segments, will be accessible to investors from around the world for direct participation.
According to a statement, the approved amendments aim to expand and diversify the base of those permitted to invest in the Main Market, thereby supporting investment inflows and enhancing market liquidity.
International investors' ownership in the capital market exceeded SR590 billion ($157.32 billion) by the end of the third quarter of 2025, while international investments in the main market reached approximately SR519 billion during the same period — an annual rise of 4 percent.
“The approved amendments eliminated the concept of the Qualified Foreign Investor in the Main Market, thereby allowing all categories of foreign investors to access the market without the need to meet qualification requirements,” said the CMA, adding: “It also eliminated the regulatory framework governing swap agreements, which were used as an option to enable non-resident foreign investors to obtain economic benefits only from listed securities, and the allowance of direct investment in shares listed on the Main Market.”
In July, the CMA approved measures to simplify the procedures for opening and operating investment accounts for certain categories of investors. These included natural foreign investors residing in one of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, as well as those who had previously resided in the Kingdom or in any GCC country.
This step represented an interim phase leading up to the decision announced today, with the aim of increasing confidence among participants in the Main Market and supporting the local economy.
Saudi Arabia, which is more than halfway through an economic plan to reduce its dependence on oil, has been trying to attract foreign investors, including by establishing exchange-traded funds with Asian partners in Japan and Hong Kong.
