Iranian bank cards now usable in Russia as nations bypass sanctions

Iranian bank cards are now operational in Russia as the two nations link their banking systems to bypass international sanctions, Iranian state television announced Monday.  

This arrangement allows Iranian cardholders to withdraw cash from ATMs in Russia and soon make in-store purchases, according to IRINN, a state news channel that broadcasts footage of a transaction conducted with an Iranian card in Moscow.

Connecting Iran's Shetab interbank network to the Russian system enabled collaboration, reducing reliance on the global SWIFT network, which has excluded Iranian banks since 2018.

The SWIFT ban was part of a broader re-imposition of sanctions on Iran following the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear agreement under President-elect Donald Trump's administration.

The new banking integration may soon extend to other nations with close financial ties to Iran, including Iraq, Afghanistan, and Turkey, IRINN reported.

Iran and Russia deepen ties amid sanctions

Both under severe economic sanctions, Tehran and Moscow have strengthened ties and expanded cooperation on a range of issues since Russia's provoked invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Washington and its Western allies, which already view the Kremlin as a pariah, have long accused Russia of purchasing Iranian attack drones for its war in Ukraine.

Also last week, in another sign of the two nations' collaboration, a Russian rocket launched multiple Iranian satellites into orbit. 

Trump campaigned on taking an even harder-line stance against Iran, but it remains unclear how the president-elect will follow through with his threats, especially given his promises to end the war in Ukraine “before his inauguration.”