Ebrahim Sheibani told a conference that at the end of the last Iranian year on March 20, the fund, designed to save windfall oil earnings for times of need, totaled $9.469 billion.

Iran, the world"s No. 2 OPEC oil producer, does not reveal a value for all its foreign reserves, although Sheibani has said the portion of dollar holdings has been falling. The governor has said Iran was "distancing" itself from dollars.

"By the end of the last Iranian year (ending March 20), the money in the Oil Stabilization Fund was around $9.469 billion," the governor said, according to new agency reports.

Sheibani had previously said that in February the fund had about $11 billion.