US-IRAN Prisoner Swap To Take Place Today

Iran's Foreign Ministry has confirmed that Iran and the US will today complete a prisoner swap as part of a negotiated deal to unlock USD$6b in frozen Iranian oil revenue.

• Iran's MFA reports that five Iranian prisoners and five US prisoners will be swapped and Iranian funds frozen in the Republic of Korea will be, "in Iran's possession today."
• Although the White House has stressed that the funds are Iranian, and are only to be unfrozen for humanitarian applications, striking any deal with Iran which includes the transfer of money, is likely to attract criticism in the US.
• Senator John Thune (R-DS) was one of many Republicans to slam the deal last week: "Iran will now count pallets of ransom money, putting its leaders in a better position to develop a nuclear weapon and fund terrorists."
• Markets will be looking at the possibility the deal could help usher in new nuclear talks with Iran. We highlighted earlier this month that efforts are being made to conduct an informal meeting of the signatories to the 2015 JCPOA deal on the margins on the UN General Assembly which begins tomorrow.