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A couple of years back, Iran greenlit the mining of cryptocurrency while at the same time giving it a tight grip by imposing strict regulations. Fast forward to 2021, the country’s central bank just dropped a new law stating that trading of Bitcoins (BTC) that were mined outside of Iran is now a no-no.
No foreign Bitcoins here
This new ruling was made known on Wednesday by the Central Bank of Iran, stating that it would only allow cryptocurrencies that were mined through legal channels inside Iran. Further, it was also mentioned that processing this will also come with certain requisites.
Those who are aware of such development believe that this move from the Central Bank of Iran was just a mere formality. This is because the government has already dropped the ban hammer on cryptocurrency’s open trading, especially Bitcoin.
Nonetheless, Decrypt stated that the recent regulation would be ushering in what is described as “logistical hurdles.” This means how the Iranian government/Central Bank of Iran will make sure that these foreign Bitcoins stay out of the country?
Not on an individual level
In line with this, Swiss/Iranian lawyer Atty. Fatemeh Fannizadeh tweeted that the new law imposed by the CBI will not be enforced on an individual level. She explains that “exchange platforms can basically not operate. But instead of a blanket ban, it allows banks and foreign offices to use Iranian crypto for international transfers.”
For the uninitiated, Iran is one of the few countries that is currently locked out of SWIFT. Now SWIFT, or the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, is a messaging system that globally runs on a network of financial institutions. This simply means that it is utilized somewhat to communicate the transfer of funds between two banks. Joining Iran in this locked-out collective are Sudan, Cuba, North Korea, the Crimea region in Ukraine, and Syria.
‘Digital rial’
The Iranian central bank has expressed its interest in launching its own digital currency. Earlier this year, the CBI said they are looking into some of the options to roll out a “digital rial.”
Steve Anderson is an Australian crypto enthusiast. He is a specialist in management and trading for over 5 years. Steve has worked as a crypto trader, he loves learning about decentralisation, understanding the true potential of the blockchain.
