Ebtekar reports that if you plan on visiting a gas station, you should carry cash. Since Shaparak Co., a Central Bank of Iran subsidary, who provides POS services (Point of Sales), has changed its payment system many stores and gas stations have turned to cash-only transactions. Shaparak recently reduced liquidating from 7 times in a 24 hour period to once every 24 hours. This has led to many retailers to be unable to clear their checks. The CEO of Shaparak, Mohsen Ghaderi, points out that in many countries, transactions are processed after 48 hours and claims by moving towards a universal standard transparency in the banking system will increase and the possibility of abuse will be reduced. Mr. Ghaderi warns gas stations of the risk of theft if they choose to only accept cash. Ebtekar continues that in many countries, personal bank accounts are monitored in order to combat money laundering. In Iran however, monitoring personal bank accounts is illegal and therefore increasing transactions times will not help transparency.
