Nima is the local name for the Integrated Forex
Deals System the government launched after it unified the USD forex rate in
April.
The platform is aimed at facilitating the
currency trades for market participants in Iran after the FX market was struck
by foreign exchange rate volatilities caused by US sanctions and de-valuating
Rials against dollar.
Putting banks as the main market player, the platform
is meant to promote transparency, fix the market liquidity, gather all FX needs
of the nation in one convenient location and prioritize the demand-supply side
making the bed for effective state interventions in times of need.
So far petrochemical companies have fulfilled all
their duties regarding registration of hard currency earned by exporting goods in
the platform.
Director General of Petrochemical Employers
Association Ahmad Mahdavi said on Saturday that since March 21 2018, petrochemical
plants had offered 6.65 billion dollars to the country’s economy of which $6bn
was traded through NIMA platform.
He also estimated that a total of $12bn worth of petrochemicals
would be exported by the end of the current calendar year to March 20, 2019.
“By
the end of this [calendar] year, another $4bn is expected to be traded on the
platform by petrochemical companies,” he added.