The figure was announced on Tuesday by South Korean news agency Yonhap, which quoted the country’s banks as saying.
As of September last year, about 3 trillion won worth of Iranian money was held at the Bank of Korea. The money was deposited by the Seoul branch of Bank Mellat of Iran.
Separately, about $7 billion worth of Iranian oil money was frozen at two South Korean banks — Industrial Bank of Korea and Woori Bank.
Hossein Tanhaee, head of the Iran-South Korea Joint Chamber of Commerce, reportedly said last year that the amount of Iran’s frozen funds in South Korea is between $6.5 billion and $9 billion.
Tensions between Seoul and Tehran rose on Monday after the IRGC seized a South Korean-flagged tanker in Persian Gulf waters, citing “chemical pollution” offences.
A South Korean delegation is to visit Tehran in coming days to discuss possible resolution of the disputes.
