Governor of the Central Bank of Iran Abdolnaser Hemmati has said that Iran and Russia are expected to finalize the third and final phase of integration between their national payment systems "Shetab" and “Mir” within the next two months.

Hemmati said the rollout would soon enable broader cross-border payment capabilities between the two countries, The Caspian Post reports via IRIB.

“Within two months, Iranian citizens will be able to make purchases and payments in Russian stores using cards linked to Shetab,” Hemmati stated.

The integration agreement between Russia’s “Mir” system and Iran’s Shetab network was originally signed in May 2022. Once fully implemented, it will allow Iranian cardholders to withdraw rubles from Shetab-linked cards at ATMs in Russia, while Russian “Mir” cardholders will be able to make payments in Iran.