The world’s leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin is selling for $24000 per BTC on LocalBitcoins in Iran based on the official exchange rate as the US-Iran tensions have escalated.

On LocalBitcoins, a peer-to-peer trading platform, the Iran-based sellers are demanding around one billion Iranian Riyals worth $24000 for a single bitcoin. The price they are asking for is according to the official rate of the central bank of the country.

US-Iran tensions Escalate

US-Iran tensions have escalated and have boosted the oil and bitcoin prices. Recently, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ elite Quds Force General Qasem Soleimani was killed in an airstrike that was ordered by US President Donald Trump.

The founder of crypto analytics outlet Messari Ryan Selkis, after seeing the price value of the leading asset on LocalBitcoins exchange in Iran, commented:

Bitcoin is trading at nearly $24,000 in the USD equivalent of Iranian Rials on LocalBitcoins today. It’s unlikely those purchases are paying for the Iranian military’s response. Instead, it might be innocent (and desperate) Iranians looking for a way out of the coming chaos.

Dual Exchange Rate in Iran

It is common today that a country can have dual exchange rates. One rate is the actual market rate while the other is the official rate that a country’s central bank sets. Countries that have weak national currencies may have different exchange rates. The official exchange rate has distorted the price value of Bitcoin in Iran. A crypto expert Ali Beikverdi says that it is possible for some governments with special procedures to get that rate. He further stated:

The official rate is what the central bank says. But literally, no one except some government organizations can get that rate while no one can use it. It’s a joke.

The official rate currently in the country is $24000 per bitcoin while the actual market rate is almost $7300.