SWIFT is waiting for clarification from the United States and the European Union on whether it must disconnect Iranian institutions from its network as the West ramps up sanctions on the country. The U.S. and EU are considering further sanctions on Iran, including cutting off its banks from the SWIFT payment network, which would make it harder for Iran to raise funds to finance its nuclear program.
SWIFT CEO Lazaro Campos defended his organization against some media claims that it is in violation of sanctions already in place, saying today at the SWIFT Operations Forum Americas in New York that SWIFT is clear about what it needs to dofor now it is merely waiting for a list of Iranian institutions it needs to disconnect from the system. This is going to happen very quickly, Campos said.
He added that SWIFT has had very active discussions with European and U.S. officials, educating them on the reality of SWIFT and what we can and cant do. For instance, SWIFT cannot filter transactions, Campos said, so there is no way for the organization to know if a transaction is of a humanitarian nature or not. We can plug or unplug, connect an institution or we dont. Thats where we are.
SWIFT will not wait for sanctions to wind their way through the legislative process; if the governments say SWIFT must cut off Iranian institutions from its network, it will do it right away, Campos said.
Campos said governments on both sides of the Atlantic are in agreement about the steps SWIFT needs to take in cutting off Iran from its network: What the U.S. and Europe are asking us to do are very much the same thing, he said.
Being a global cooperativeSWIFT operates in 210 countriesputs the organization in a particularly delicate position when it comes to politics, as governments will not always be in agreement. That creates the potential for SWIFT to find itself in the midst of a political tug-of-war.
No one wants to be in the middle of a political discussion that may have a different slant in the Western world than other parts of the planet, Campos said.
Iranian banks sent 1.16 million messages and received 1.1 million via the SWIFT network in 2010, according to reports.
(CG)