Iran Will Not Legalize Crypto

Iran’s Deputy Minister of Communications Reza Bagheri Asl has reported the Iranian government has abandoned the idea of ​​legalizing cryptocurrencies in the country.

According to him, the use of any foreign currencies and digital assets issued by third parties is contrary to the monetary policy of Iran and the legislation regulating the activity. As a result, the authorities are not going to allow citizens to pay with virtual currencies for goods and services. He has said:

“In no case will we accept a decree on granting legal tender status to cryptocurrencies that do not belong to us. Iran will create a national virtual currency, digital rial, respectively, payments in all other digital assets will remain banned.”

The Central Bank of Iran has recently published a report on the digital rial. According to the document, the CBDC will be released on the blockchain with the function of creating smart contracts. The work of the network will be controlled by government agencies, and the Central Bank will monitor the economic consequences of using the asset.