World Business and Economic Analysis
World Business and Economic Analysis
French state bank BPI to fund projects in Iran, CEO tells paper
The logo of French Public Investment Bank (BPI) is seen on the BPI headquarters at Maisons-Alfort near Paris March 16, 2015. REUTERS/Charles Platiau/File Photo
PARIS (Reuters) - Bpifrance, the country’s state investment bank, will finance investment projects of French companies in Iran from 2018, granting up to 500 million euros ($598 million) in annual credits, its CEO said in a newspaper interview on Sunday.
“Excluding a force majeure case, we will be on their side in early 2018. We are the only French bank that can do it without risking U.S. sanctions for a possible breach of remaining embargo rules,” Nicolas Dufourcq told Le Journal du Dimanche.
The deal Iran struck in 2015 with six major powers lifted many sanctions against the country in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear activities and paved the way for international business deals.
But many banks have stayed away for fear of inadvertently breaking remaining U.S. sanctions, which could lead to huge fines.
Because the BPI has no operations abroad, notably in the United States, it is not exposed to possible fines for U.S. sanctions breaches.
U.S. President Donald Trump has created new uncertainties over the U.S. stance towards the Iran nuclear agreexcment. Trump told reporters this week that he had made a decision on what to do about the agreement but would not say what he had decided.
Several Franco-Iranian deals were announced during Iran President Hassan Rouhani’s official visit to Paris in January last year. These included a joint venture between carmakers PSA Peugeot Citroen (PEUP.PA) and Iran Khodro as well as plans for Iran to buy Airbus (AIR.PA) aircraft to update its ageing fleet.
There were also deals in the oil, shipping, health, agriculture and water sectors.
Source:Reuters
World Business Year International project Finance and Investment consulting reported that ,Iran has secured an €8-billion credit line from South Korea's Eximbank, the Islamic republic's biggest loan deal since its 2015 nuclear accord, the Iranian central bank announced Thursday.
"The biggest contract since the atomic accord was signed with South Korea's Eximbank today for the amount of €8 billion (RM40.39 billion)," said central bank governor Valiollah Seif, in a statement carried by state news agency Irna.
A spokesman for South Korea's export credit bank, contacted by AFP, said the deal would finance projects in Iran by companies from the Asian country.
"We started signing with Iranian banks a framework agreement today. We did it with three Iranian banks today and will do so with nine other Iran banks in the coming week to complete the agreement," he said.
"Under the agreement, Eximbank will provide an €8-billion credit line for those banks so that they can help finance various projects in Iran that are awarded to South Korean companies," said the bank spokesman.
Seif said the loan would facilitate "several development and production projects", and it showed the international community was ready to restore "long-term" banking ties with Iran.
Under the landmark July 2015 nuclear accord signed by Iran and world powers, Tehran has curbed its atomic programme in exchange for an easing of international sanctions from January 2016.
But Washington has maintained and increased unilateral sanctions over Iran's ballistic missiles programme and alleged support for terrorist groups, deterring a full return to the Iranian market by some international players cautious over possible US punitive measures.
"One of the problems created by international sanctions was they put a halt to financial accords," said the central bank chief.
US President Donald Trump, who took office in January, is a fierce critic of the nuclear deal, acting as a deterrent to a normalisation between the Iranian banking sector and major international banks.
But with the Eximbank agreement sealed, "I hope we will be able to announce more good news in the days and months ahead," said Seif.
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani says the country, a major oil producer, needs massive foreign investment to revive its economy and combat its high unemployment, officially estimated at 12.7%.
Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal will team with Egyptian developer Talaat Moustafa Group to invest $800 million in Egyptian hotel projects, one of the largest planned injections of foreign cash since Egypt embarked upon a major economic reform program.
Talal’s Kingdom Holding Co. and TMG plan to expand the Sharm el-Sheikh Four Seasons resort on the Red Sea and build new two hotels, at El Alamein on the north coast of Egypt and at Madinaty in Cairo, the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation said in an emailed statement. Talaat Moustafa said in a filing to the Egyptian exchange that it is studying the projects.
“This is a global investor and he compares between places to decide where to invest,” Investment Minister Sahar Nasr told reporters in Cairo. “He sees that the business environment is now attractive and he is committed to investing in Egypt.”
Egypt has said it hopes to exceed its $10 billion target for foreign direct investment this year, after taking a series of steps meant to restore investor confidence, including easing currency restrictions and cutting subsidies in a successful bid to win a $12 billion International Monetary Fund loan. The government sees investments by the world’s 48th-richest man, with a net worth of $18.7 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, as a positive signal about its economy that would draw in more cash.
Boosting tourism is a key component of Egypt’s economic recovery program. The industry has been battered by the bombing of a Russian passenger plane over Sharm in 2015 that killed all 224 people aboard, and by other militant attacks on security forces and civilian targets.
