Iran Set To Legalize Crypto Mining

According to news agency PressTV, the Iranian government is planning on authorizing Cryptocurrency mining in the country. The report made on the 10th of July states that the governor of the country’s Central Bank (CBI) has confirmed this.

Iran To Legalize Cryptocurrrency

Abdol Hemmati, the Central Bank’s governor has reportedly confirmed that the government has consented to parts of the executive law which seeks to make the mining of digital currencies such as Bitcoin legal in the country. The state of the Crypto market in the country has been uncertain for some time due to constant disagreements among government officials on the legal status of the asset class.

According to Hemmati, Crypto mining will have to go by the export price of electricity according to the planned executive law. Miners will not be able to use electricity from the heavily subsidized internal grid. Going by the report, Iran exports electricity to other neighboring countries at prices which are 40 to 100 times higher than its internal power price.

Unconfirmed reports state that Chinese miners are moving to the country due to the affordable energy prices for mining purposes.

Iran Plans To Shut Out Crypto Mining From Internal Grid

The Central Bank governor added that Crypto miners in the country should contribute to its economy instead of moving the mined Crypto abroad. He stated that the Central Bank would not approve any currency whose value is backed by the value of the national fiat currency of the country, gold, or any other asset.

Previous reports has stated that authorities in the country were planning on cutting off power to Crypto mining due to the sudden surge in the amount of electricity consumed. According to the reports, the abnormal surge was caused by the rise of Crypto mining activities in the country. Subsequently, the Iranian government raided two mining operations, seizing over 1000 Bitcoin mining hardware units.

Earlier this month, the CBI’s deputy governor for new technologies, Nasser Hakimi, stated that trading in Crypto was illegal in the country according to it money laundering laws. When interviewed by Tasnim News, the deputy governor pointed out the legal and investment risks members of the public were exposing themselves to by trading Cryptocurrency, especially the high volatility level of the asset. He also voiced his concerns about Crypto advertisements noting that Crypto pyramid schemes are being promoted via the same channel.

Assistant Minister of Industry, Trade, and Supply Claims US Congress Sabotaging Iran’s Crypto Prospects

On the 6th of July, the country’s Assistant Minister of Industry, Trade, and Supply claimed that the United States Congress was working hard to stop the country’s efforts towards Crypto and Bitcoin mining. According to the assistant minister, the US was preventing the country from accessing a tool that would help her evade sanctions. The severe inflation experienced in the local fiat currency has attracted more Iranians towards Crypto investments. The local fiat currency, the Iranian rial (IRR) is struggling in the midst of an impasse on the nuclear crisis deal.