MTN , the cellular network operator with $1-billion (about R14.26-billion) stuck in Iran, has agreed to make an investment of €20-million that will support Snapp.ir, the Islamic Republic's first cab-hailing smartphone app. The funds "will allow us to quickly expand to cities" other than Teheran, Snapp CEO Shahram Shahkar said on Tuesday.MTN will transfer the cash to the app's owner, Iran Internet Group, which operates and invests in start-up and e-commerce companies.MTN's investment in Snapp strengthens the phone company's ties with Iran as it tries to repatriate $1.1-billion from the country following the lifting of US-led economic sanctions.MTN's former chief financial officer, Brett Goschen, said in August that it would take at least five months for the carrier to transfer the money because of the lack of ties between Iran and international banks.MTN shares fell 0.5% to R113.23 in Johannesburg yesterday morning, extending the year's decline to 15%.MTN, Africa's biggest cellphone company by sales, has invested in tech start-ups through the Middle Eastern Internet Group and Africa Internet Holdings. Both of those ventures are in partnership with Germany's Rocket Internet SE, which is not involved in MTN's investments in Iran.MTN is a 49% stakeholder in a joint venture with Iran's second-biggest telecommunications provider, IranCell...