TEHRAN- The first ever data vending deal in the Iranian capital market was signed between Iran Financial Center (IFC) and Greece’s Inforex S.A. data vendor company on Sunday.

Based on the deal, which was signed by Inforex Managing Director Eleni Pateropoulou and IFC Managing Director Ali Naqavi in Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) headquarters, IFC will provide Inforex with data about Iranian companies listed on the exchanges for a period of two years and the Greek company is committed to offer them to the foreigners interested in making investment in Iran.
 
Inforex is servicing the largest securities firms, banks and financial institutions of the Greek market while also providing services to individuals with high interest in the Greek and international markets.

IFC is in the business of enhancing knowledge and skills of financial market participants in Iran. The center’s shareholders are mainly Iranian exchanges including TSE, Iran's over-the-counter (OTC) market known also as Iran Fara Bourse (IFB), Iran Energy Exchange, Iran Mercantile Exchange and Central Securities Depository of Iran.

 ‘IFC providing a specific data platform’

Addressing the signing ceremony, Naqavi said that having information about the financial status of Iranian companies is necessary for the foreign investors who want to invest in Iran and given the emphasis put by Iran’s Securities and Exchange Organization for attraction of foreign investors to the country’s capital market, IFC is providing a specific platform to offer data on financial and trade status of Iranian companies to the foreign investors.

He said that IFC has been conducted three rounds of negotiations over the past two months on investigating all legal and technical issues of the deal with Inforex.

He expressed hope that this deal will lead to other deals with the other foreign data vendors and said that some negotiations have been already made in this due and also said: “I hope we will take bigger steps in development of Iran’s capital market.”

 ‘A chapter for Iran’s entering global capital markets’ 

Pateropoulou, for her part, expressed hope that this deal will open a chapter for Iranian economy and the country’s entering the world’s capital markets.

Mentioning the deal recently signed between the Iranian and Greek capital markets, she said: “Our efforts will come to result just once we reach a desirable level of cooperation with Iranian exchanges and industries; therefore for success in this due we should work hard and with all-out efforts in Iran’s capital market.”

The Inforex’s managing director further said that they are present in Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, the UAE, Oman, Qatar, the Balkans and also UK, Germany and France; so they will provide Iranian companies’ data to the investors in these countries.

 ‘Iran the hot spot, foreigners say’

In an exclusive interview with the Tehran Times on the sidelines of the signing ceremony, Pateropoulou said: “All foreign investors are saying Iran is the hot spot of the planet. [Iran’s] economy at present is very strong and it’s continually growing. Everybody wants to come to Iran; so this gives of the great opportunity for the foreign investors to come here and access the data and see the data and also trade with these data.” 

Mentioning the condition getting better after the sanctions removal against Iran, she said: “We are really strong; we are leading providers in all countries I mentioned before, Greece, Turkey, Cyprus, Balkan countries and we will expand our business to other countries as well. Iran is one of the biggest markets in the world, so we are very happy that we are the first to sign such an agreement.”

PHOTO: IFC Managing Director Ali Naqavi (L) and Inforex Managing Director Eleni Pateropoulou exchanging the documents of data vending deal