Bank Melli Iran
 |
|
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Native name
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Persian: بانک ملی ایران |
|---|---|
| Public | |
| Industry | Banking, Financial services |
| Founded | 1927 |
| Headquarters | Tehran, Iran |
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Area served
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Worldwide |
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Key people
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MohammadReza Hosseinzadeh (Chairman) |
| Products | Consumer banking, corporate banking, finance and insurance, investment banking, mortgage loans, wealth management, credit cards, |
| Revenue | US$72 billion (2011) |
|
Number of employees
|
53,570 |
| Website | www.bmi.ir |
Bank Melli Iran (BMI, Persian: بانک ملی ایران, lit. National Bank of Iran) is the first national Iranian bank. The bank was established in 1927 by the order of the Iranian Majlis (the Iranian Parliament) and since then has consistently been one of the most influential Iranian banks.
In 1931 the Iranian Majlis authorized the bank to print and distribute the Iranian currency rial. BMI acted as the central bank of Iran until Bank Markazi was established in 1960, after which all of its central banking responsibilities were transferred to the new central bank. Since 1933, BMI has grown to become a large retail bank with several domestic and international branches. BMI opened its first foreign branch in Hamburg, Germany, in 1965. BMI is now the largest commercial retail bank in Iran and in the Middle East with over 3,300 branches and 43,000 employees. Bank Melli Iran is owned and operated by the government of Iran.
All banks in Iran must follow the banking principles and practices described in the Islamic Banking (Sharia) law of Iran passed in 1983 by the Islamic Majlis of Iran. According to this law, banks can only engage in interest-free Islamic transactions (interest is considered as usury or riba and is forbidden by Islam and its holy book the Quran). The permitted commercial transactions involve exchange of goods and services in return for a share of the assumed profit. All such transactions are performed through Islamic contracts, such as mozarebe, foroush aghsati, joale, salaf, and gharzol-hassane. Details of these contracts and related practices are contained in the Iranian Interest-Free banking law and its guidelines.
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Wikipedia