Iran's central bank has decided to shut down accounts for Korean currency-based transaction settlements at Woori Bank and the Industrial Bank of Korea.

The Central Bank of Iran said the annual deposit rates of 0.1 percent are too low given that the deposits amount to around W5 trillion (US$1=W1,135).

The two Korean banks are expected to enter negotiations with Iran, as the closure of these accounts could negatively affect more than 2,600 local SMEs that export to Iran.