TEHRAN- Iran’s National Development Fund (NDF) has paid 10 trillion rials (about $238.09 million) for the stabilization of the country’s stock exchange market, the board chairman of the Capital Market Stabilization Fund told IRNA on Sunday.

Mohammad-Ebrahim Agha-Babaei said that 10 trillion rials was transferred from the National Development Fund to the Capital Market Stabilization Fund on Thursday, November 26.

It was previously announced that one percent of the National Development Fund’s reserves was supposed to be transferred to the Capital Market Stabilization Fund, to stabilize the stock market, and bring growth back to this market.

The agreement that had been raised for some time on the issue of depositing some reserves of the National Development Fund in the Capital Market Stabilization Fund was accompanied by some problems and ambiguities on the part of the National Development Fund, which led to delays in its implementation, Agha-Babaei noted.

He said that the National Development Fund was set to allocate resources to the Capital Market Stabilization Fund in several sections, adding that the resources allocated to the Capital Market Stabilization Fund are a kind of facility that is repaid annually at an interest rate of 12 percent.

In the first part, the National Development Fund has deposited 10 trillion rials with the Capital Market Stabilization Fund at an interest rate of 12 percent for a period of five years, which can be extended, he added.

According to Agha-Babaei, this can be positive for the capital market and, if necessary, can be used to increase liquidity in the stock market.

He went on to say that the Capital Market Stabilization Fund has requested a higher amount from the National Development Fund, and new funds will be deposited soon if agreed.

These resources were deposited in the Capital Market Stabilization Fund on Thursday, December 26, and have not yet played a role in the growth of the capital market, he stated.

MA/MA