Iran gains $ 5 bn on dollar to euro shift

Iran has gained $ 5 bn through its policy of shifting away from the US currency in favour of the euro, Central Bank Governor Mahmoud Bahmani was quoted as saying.
"Iran has considerably reduced the amount of US dollars in its currency basket," said Mahmoud Bahmani in Tehran at the 3rd Seminar on Banking Services and Export.

Since October 2007, Iran has received 85 % of its oil revenues in currencies other than the US dollar, and "the country expresses determination to substitute the greenback for the remaining 15 % of its oil revenues."
The Iranian government began preparing the ground for the dollar's replacement by the euro and other foreign exchanges in 2005. The constant slide of the dollar, coupled with the persisting economic crisis in the US, has forced many countries to drop the currency in favour of a more stable and valuable ones.

Saudi Arabia, South Korea, China, Venezuela, Sudan and Russia have taken steps to replace the dollar in their foreign exchange reserves as well.