Valiollah Seif ( fa, ولی‌الله سیف, born 1 January 1952) is an

Iranian Iranian may refer to: * Iran, a sovereign state * Iranian peoples, the speakers of the Iranian languages. The term Iranic peoples is also used for this term to distinguish the pan ethnic term from Iranian, used for the people of Iran * Iranian lan ...

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

. He was the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the

Central Bank of Iran The Central Bank of Iran (CBI), also known as ''Bank Markazi'', officially the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran ( fa, بانک مرکزی جمهوری اسلامی ايران, Bank Markazi-ye Jomhuri-ye Eslāmi-ye Irān; SWIFT Code: B ...

from 2013 until 2018.

Early life

Seif was born on 1 January 1952 in Nahavnd. He gained his Bsc. and Msc. from

Petroleum University of Technology The Petroleum University of Technology ( fa, دانشگاه صنعت نفت) is an Iranian public university funded by the Ministry of Petroleum particularly by its main company, the NIOC. It was founded in 1939 in Abadan in response to the inc ...

(former N.I.O.C. school of Accounting and Finance) and his Ph.D. from Allameh Tabatabaei University in

Accounting Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "languag ...

. He is currently a professor at the Allameh University.

Career

He was CEO and chairman of some private banks in Iran, Mellat Bank (1990–1992), Saderat Bank (1992–1995),

Sepah Bank Bank Sepah ( fa, بانک سپه, ''Bānke Sepah''), the first banking and Insurance in Iran, Iranian bank, was established in 1925 (corresponding to 1304 in the Iranian Calendar). Its first branch, in Tehran, opened that year. The bank also has b ...

(1995–2000), Future Bank of

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

(2001–2003) and

Karafarin Bank The Karafarin Bank ( fa, بانک کارآفرین, ''Bank Karâferin''), which translates to ''Entrepreneurship Bank'' is a private bank in Iran. Established in 2001, it is now one of Iran's leading private banks and also the first private ban ...

(2010–2013). He was also governor of National Bank of Iran from 2003 to 2007. He was nominated as governor of

by the bank's board of directors and was accepted by President

Hassan Rouhani Hassan Rouhani ( fa, حسن روحانی, Standard Persian pronunciation: ; born Hassan Fereydoun ( fa, حسن فریدون, links=no); 12 November 1948) is an Iranian politician who served as the seventh president of Iran from 2013 to 2021. ...

. He was officially appointed on 2 September 2013 and quickly hinted that

interest rates An interest rate is the amount of interest due per period, as a proportion of the amount lent, deposited, or borrowed (called the principal sum). The total interest on an amount lent or borrowed depends on the principal sum, the interest rate, th ...

should rise in order to control

inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reductio ...

in the country. He is currently vice president of the International Chamber of Commerce.

Honours

He received gold medal for Public Relations from President

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدی‌نژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956),

in January 2011. He was also named as one of Iran's banking industry faces persistent in 2012.

Criticisms

In November 1995, following the embezzlement of 123 billion tomans ($820 million) of Bank Saderat Iran Valiollah Seif who was chairman of the bank at the time was criticized. On 2017, Seif's reputation was hit hard when one of the five official Central Bank-approved credit institutions was unable to pay back the deposits of the customers. Unable to give reasonable explanation to the public, Valiollah Seif was soon the target for the public, media, and government officials. Protesters generally called for his execution. On 2017 case was filed against Seif. On 13 September 2018, immediately after dismissal from service he was designated as an advisor for financial and banking affairs of Hassan Rouhani. The judiciary's spokesman, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei explained: he was accused of violating the law after the arrest of his deputy for currency affairs, Ahmad Araqchi (the brother of deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi). On 2021, his case was referred to an economic court. Tehran Prosecutor General, Ali Alqasi Mehr accused Valiollah Seif of "repeatedly violating regulations" and of "dereliction of duty" Which has caused "Wasting" more than $30bn and 60 tonnes of gold reserves.

Jail sentence

In 2021, he was sentenced to 10 years behind bars on corruption charges.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seif, Valiollah 1952 births Allameh Tabataba'i University faculty Living people Iranian economists Iranian bankers People from Hamadan Governors of the Central Bank of Iran Iranian individuals subject to the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctions