Central Bank of Iran
Seal of Central Bank of Iran | |
Bank Markazi Tower, headquarters of the Central Bank of Iran since 2005 | |
| Headquarters | CBI Tower, Tehran |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 35°45′29″N 51°26′07″E / 35.758110°N 51.435209°E |
| Ownership | 100% state ownership |
| Governor | Abdolnaser Hemmati |
| Central bank of | Iran |
| Currency | Iranian rial IRR (ISO 4217) |
| Reserves | $130 billion (2017) |
| Reserve requirements | 10% to 13% |
| Bank rate | 15% |
| Interest paid on excess reserves? | Yes |
| Website | www.cbi.ir |
| 1 According to article 10(e) of the Monetary and Banking Act of (1972), CBI's capital "is fully paid up and wholly owned by the Government". 2 Bank Melli Iran had supervisory functions and regulated the activities of all banks in Iran, while being the largest profit-making commercial bank in the country. | |
The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran (CBI; Persian: بانک مرکزی جمهوری اسلامی ايران, romanized: Bank Markazi-ye Jomhuri-ye Eslāmi-ye Irān; SWIFT Code: BMJIIRTH), also known as Bank Markazi, was established under the Iranian Banking and Monetary Act in 1960. It serves as the banker to the Iranian government and has the exclusive right to issue banknotes and coinage. CBI is tasked with maintaining the value of the Iranian rial and supervision of banks and credit institutions. It acts as custodian of the National Jewels, as well as the foreign exchange and gold reserves of Iran. It is also a founding member of the Asian Clearing Union, controls gold and capital flows overseas, represents Iran in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and internationally concludes payment agreements between Iran and other countries.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Iran since a December 2025 currency collapse is Abdolnasser Hemmati, who replaced Mohammad-Reza Farzin
In November 2023 after 50 years the central bank was revamped fully and changed to include Islamic Republic Development Bank. The Central Bank was cyberattacked by IRLeaks in August 2024. The Iranian government was forced to pay ransom to the hackers in order to secure the data of Iranian customers.