Iran reminds citizens of crypto ban after using crypto for $10 million import order
Iranian citizens are still banned from buying and selling cryptocurrencies in the country, according to a recent statement from the country’s officials. The statement comes days after the Middle Eastern country announced it was using crypto for foreign trade.
Iran Ink’s first import order in Crypto
Last week, Iran announced that it has completed its first crypto-based order, worth $10 million. A report by the local semi-official Tasnim news agency said the country plans to expand the use of digital currencies and smart contracts in foreign trade by the end of next month. It quoted the head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) Alireza Peyman-Pak as saying:
“This week, the first official import order registration worth $10 million was completed in cryptocurrency. By the end of September, the use of cryptocurrencies and smart contracts will be widely used in foreign trade with target countries.”
Iran’s bold crypto move came a month after the US announced a new round of sanctions against the country. At the beginning of 2022, Iran was the most sanctioned country in the world. However, the country lost this spot after the US and its allies announced sweeping sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
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Citizens still banned from trading crypto
Despite its historic move to use crypto in foreign trade, Iran has not lifted its ban on cryptocurrency trading. Ali Salehabadi, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), has reportedly reiterated the government’s stance against cryptocurrency trading, reminding citizens that buying or selling crypto assets, as well as using them for investment purposes, remains prohibited.
On the other hand, authorized entities are allowed to mine crypto and use it for international settlements, Salehabadi said. He said Iranian companies can use crypto-assets to pay for imports, citing regulations passed by the bank and other government institutions such as the Ministry of Industry, Mining and Trade, according to a report by the English-language edition of the Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA).
Iran’s central bank banned the trading of cryptocurrencies inside the country in 2019. In the same year, the country recognized mining as a legitimate industrial activity and issued licenses to a number of enterprises.
In mid-2021, the Iranian Ministry of Commerce issued operating licenses for 30 crypto mining centers in the country, the Financial Tribune reported. The ministry also issued 2,579 establishment permits for new industrial cryptomining units at the time, but mandated miners to sell their mined bitcoins to Iran’s central bank.
In particular, mining has placed unprecedented pressure on Iran’s power grid, forcing the government to cut power to even authorized miners at times. Nevertheless, the country remains one of the largest Bitcoin mining hubs, accounting for 4.5% of all bitcoin mining.
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About the author
Ruholamin Haqshanas is an accomplished crypto and financial journalist with over two years of experience writing in the field. He has a solid grasp of various segments of the FinTech space, including the decentralized iteration of financial systems (DeFi), and the emerging market for non-fungible tokens (NFT). He is an active user of digital assets for money transfers.
