Iran announces new currency translation rates for bank financial statements

New regulations have been issued regarding the currency translation rates for Iranian banks' financial statements for the first half of the year. Based on the new directive, the basis for translating the foreign currency items of banks will be the purchase rate of foreign exchange and gold remittances from the Iran Currency and Gold Exchange Center as of September 22, 2026.

Banks are required to implement these new rates for the translation of their foreign currency accounts within banking systems starting Tuesday. While these centralized rates will be used for account translation, other foreign exchange operations involving the secondary market and the Iran Currency and Gold Exchange Center will continue according to existing procedures.

These translation rates are critical variables for bank financial statements because they directly affect the Rials value of significant foreign currency assets and liabilities. Changes in these rates can impact reported profits and losses, equity ratios, capital adequacy, and a bank's ability to distribute dividends. Investors are advised to distinguish between profits derived from actual banking operations and those resulting solely from currency translation fluctuations.