Iran's Crypto Market Plunges Amid Central Bank Ban

Iran's cryptocurrency market has seen a significant decline in transactions since the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) implemented a ban on all financial institutions handling cryptocurrencies in late April. According to Sepehr Mohammadi, chairman of the Blockchain Association of Iran, about 1,000 Bitcoins were transacted per day before the ban, but this number has dropped to around 300 per day.

The CBI's directive was aimed at preventing capital flight and fixing the US dollar exchange rate. However, it created many challenges for crypto-based businesses, including disruptions to online gateways and websites that facilitated cryptocurrency purchases and sales.

Mohammadi stressed that this led to a black market where fraud became rampant. The ban also prohibited the legal import of cryptocurrency mining gear, affecting miners who relied on application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) for their operations.