Press TV- Serious indications are appearing that show Iranian authorities are taking steps to help local firms sell bonds abroad.

This appears to be part of a plan to encourage local firms to explore alternatives to domestic lending, where rates remain above 20 percent.

The plan � as a report by Reuters showed � has been devised by the Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO).

"There is a big project to help big listed companies or even the government itself to issue bonds in other countries, the first of which is Korea," said Bahador Bijani, ?Vice Chairman for International and Foreign Investment Affairs at the SEO.

"Additionally, the SEO is facilitating the process of listed companies issuing bonds in international markets like London."

Iranian international bond issuance has been virtually non-existent since the late 1970s, the time of the country's Islamic Revolution, Reuters added in its report.

Now, issuing bonds in international markets could help Iran alleviate another problem: A lack of expertise in syndicating foreign currency debt after being shut out global capital markets for some two decades.

In an article in August 2016, Iran�s Persian-language newspaper Donya-ye Eqtesad described using the current tools in international debts markets as an appropriate post-sanctions solution for the Iranian government to expedite its economic growth.

Donya-ye Eqtesad emphasized that the government could use the international debt markets, specifically those in London, Hong Kong and New York, to support parts of its international needs now that the sanctions against the country have been lifted.� It added that an immediate tool to the same effect was to use the dollar-nominated bonds.

This policy should be specifically encouraged for companies that are mainly exporters of Iranian goods and make revenues in dollars, the daily wrote.�Nevertheless, it is not free from its own risks and the government needs to be aware about them.