Ranking of Swift Alternatives in the Sanctioned Environment Case Study: Islamic Republic of Iran

One of the sections in the sanctions targeted against the Islamic Republic of Iran is interbank communications and cutting off the country's access to the Swift system. With the rise of international disagreements on the pretext of the country's nuclear issues on Saturday, March 18, 2012, the Swift system of the Central Bank of Iran was cut off in line with sanctions.Accordingly, the main purpose of this study is to identify and rank Swift alternatives in the sanctions environment in Iran. Initially, the field method (semi-structured interview) was used to identify solutions (alternatives) and criteria (characteristics of each method such as velocity of exchange, security, etc.) while reviewing the experiences of other countries. Then, to rank the identified strategies and criteria, the multi-criteria decision making method (AHP) and Expert Choice software have been used. After completing the questionnaire in the expert group, the results show that, Bilateral monetary pact and currency swap, joining to China -Russian financial system are the top priority solutions.