SPV to facilitate non-dollar trade with Iran
The Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) is a special-purpose vehicle (SPV) established in January 2019 by France, Germany and the United Kingdom to facilitate non-dollar trade with Iran.[1] The SPV is headquartered in Paris, France, and is headed by German national Per Fischer, who formerly served as Head of Financial Institutions at Commerzbank, between 2003 and 2014.[2]. As of May 2019, the use of the SPV is limited to humanitarian purposes; for example, the purchase of otherwise embargoed foods or medicines[3].
On 11 February 2019, Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov said that Russia will seek to participate in INSTEX.[4]
On June 28, 2019, the EU released a statement stating that INSTEX has been made operational and that the first transactions are being processed.[5]