The Iranian government has approved merger of five banks, owned by military institutions, into the state Bank Sepah.
“Ansar Bank, Ghavamin Bank, Hekmat Iranian Bank, Mehr Eqtesad Bank as well as Kosar Financial Credit Institution will be all merged into Bank Sepah following the approval of the Monetary and Credit Council and the High Economic Cooperation Council comprised of heads of the three power divisions (Executive, Parliament, Judiciary),” the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) said in a statement on Saturday.
The divestment comes after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced the merger during his latest speech addressing the eighth General Assembly of the Central Bank of Iran last week.
Iranian Defense Minister َAhmad Hatami had also spoken of “good news” about such merger.
Ansar Bank is owned by a web of companies belonging to Bonyad Taavon Sepah (BTS, or the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Cooperative Foundation); Bank Hekmat Iranian is wholly owned by the army; Bank Ghavamin is wholly owned by NAJA Cooperative Foundation (the cooperative of the Law Enforcement Force); and Mehr Eghtesad Bank is owned by the Basij, the paramilitary organization affiliated with the IRGC. Lastly, Kosar — a credit and financial institution as opposed to a fully licensed bank — belongs to the Cooperative Foundation of the Ministry of Defense, according to Al Monitor.
The initial logic behind the creation of so many different banks was to manage the financial affairs of the respective organizations as well as their affiliated companies, the website says.