Iran allows cryptocurrency use in foreign trade
Iran’s central bank has eased foreign currency restrictions in an effort to encourage companies to bring export earnings back into the country. Businesses are now allowed to use Bitcoin and the USDT stablecoin for cross-border settlements through local cryptocurrency exchanges.
According to the Financial Times, exporters will also be able to use foreign currency earned abroad to finance imports directly. Previously, they had to first sell those funds through the government’s foreign exchange platform at official rates.
Why Iran is changing the rules
The easing comes as U.S. sanctions pressure continues to intensify. In June, blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs said more than $3.8 billion had moved between crypto exchange CoinEx and sanctioned Iranian entities over more than seven years. CoinEx rejected claims that it had commercial ties with the Iranian government or domestic exchanges and said it had not provided funding channels to sanctioned parties.
In early June, the U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on four Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges as part of its Economic Fury campaign. Shortly before that, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said U.S. authorities had seized around $1 billion in crypto assets linked to Iran.
Later, on July 14, Bessent said more than $130 million in cryptocurrency held in wallets linked to Iran’s central bank had also been frozen. The Iranian regulator has not publicly commented on the new rules.
Why Iran is under sanctions
Sanctions against Iran have been building for decades, with the country’s nuclear program becoming one of the main reasons for the restrictions. The U.S. and other countries have accused Tehran of lacking transparency and have raised concerns that uranium enrichment could bring Iran closer to developing a nuclear weapon. Since 2006, the UN Security Council has adopted several resolutions imposing restrictions, while the U.S. has gradually expanded sanctions against Iranian banks, the oil sector and companies linked to nuclear and missile programs.
Separate U.S. sanctions are also tied to Iran’s support for armed groups in the Middle East, its ballistic missile program and allegations of human rights abuses. As a result, some restrictions remained in place even after the 2015 nuclear deal. In later years, Washington again tightened pressure, limiting Iran’s access to dollar transactions, the international financial system and export revenues.
The U.S. has also expanded sanctions against Iran’s crypto sector.
Latest Cryptoreg News
-
Afghanistan
-
Albania
-
Algeria
-
Angola
-
Argentina
-
Armenia
-
Australia
-
Austria
-
Azerbaijan
-
Bahamas
-
Bahrain
-
Bangladesh
-
Belarus
-
Belgium
-
Bolivia
-
Botswana
-
Brazil
-
Brunei
-
Bulgaria
-
Cambodia
-
Cameroon
-
Canada
-
Chile
-
China
-
Colombia
-
Congo
-
Costa Rica
-
Cote d'Ivoire
-
Croatia
-
Cuba
-
Cyprus
-
Czechia
-
DR Congo
-
Denmark
-
Dominican Republic
-
Ecuador
-
Egypt
-
El Salvador
-
Estonia
-
Eswatini
-
Ethiopia
-
Finland
-
France
-
Georgia
-
Germany
-
Ghana
-
Greece
-
Haiti
-
Hong Kong
-
Hungary
-
India
-
Indonesia
-
Iran, Islamic republic
-
Iraq
-
Ireland
-
Israel
-
Italy
-
Jamaica
-
Japan
-
Jordan
-
Kazakhstan
-
Kenya
-
Korea
-
Kuwait
-
Kyrgyzstan
-
Laos
-
Latvia
-
Lebanon
-
Lesotho
-
Libya
-
Lithuania
-
Luxembourg
-
Madagascar
-
Malaysia
-
Malta
-
Mauritius
-
Mexico
-
Moldova
-
Mongolia
-
Montenegro
-
Morocco
-
Mozambique
-
Myanmar
-
Namibia
-
Nepal
-
Netherlands
-
New Zealand
-
Nigeria
-
North Macedonia
-
Norway
-
Oman
-
Pakistan
-
Palestine
-
Panama
-
Papua New Guinea
-
Paraguay
-
Peru
-
Philippines
-
Poland
-
Portugal
-
Puerto Rico
-
Qatar
-
Reunion
-
Romania
-
Rwanda
-
Saudi Arabia
-
Serbia
-
Singapore
-
Slovakia
-
Slovenia
-
Somalia
-
South Africa
-
Spain
-
Sri Lanka
-
Sweden
-
Switzerland
-
Syria
-
Taiwan
-
Tajikistan
-
Tanzania
-
Thailand
-
Trinidad and Tobago
-
Tunisia
-
Turkey
-
UAE
-
Uganda
-
Ukraine
-
United Kingdom
-
United States
-
Uruguay
-
Uzbekistan
-
Venezuela
-
Vietnam
-
Yemen
-
Zambia
-
Zimbabwe
- Forex
- Crypto
