REVEALED: Where has Iran stashed its oil billions?
Iranian oil payments held in the countries in Asia that are still importing its crude
Iran will receive $4.2bn from its oil sales to be transferred in instalments if it fulfils its commitments in a landmark nuclear deal struck between world powers and Tehran in Geneva. Here is a look at where Iranian oil payments are held in the countries in Asia that are still importing crude from the OPEC producer. Country: China
\nBank: Kunlun Bank, owned by China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC)
\nEstimated Amount: China struck an agreement with Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani in an early November meeting to start releasing the $22 billion oil payment blocked in an Iranian bank account in Beijing, theFars News Agency reported. A source familiar with the situation told Reuters that the Iranian Central Bank and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) each has two accounts at Kunlun, one yuan-denominated and one in euros. Country: India
\nBank: UCO Bank
\nEstimated Amount: About $5.3 billion held up by the sanctions. Of the total, about $1.8 billion is with the oil companies that have bought crude from Iran and the remainder is held with state-run UCO Bank. In mid-October, the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) had asked Indian refiners to pay in euros via Turkey's state-owned Halkbank. Country: South Korea
\nBank: Woori Bank and Industrial Bank of Korea
\nEstimated Amount: Iran has about 5.9 trillion won ($5.56 billion) in won deposits, a foreign exchange authority source said. Country: Japan
\nBank: Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ
\nEstimated Amount: The total amount held is unclear, but Japan imported about $4.7 billion worth of Iranian crude between February and September, according to data from the Finance Ministry.
