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Minister: Iran may resort to using cryptocurrency to ease US sanctions

August 9, 2018 at 11:46 am

Iranian Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi [En.kampala]

Iranian Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Mohammad-Javad Azari Jahromi said yesterday that President Hassan Rouhani has ordered a joint meeting to be held between his ministry and the Central Bank to discuss proposals to trade in cryptocurrency, the Iranian news agency IRNA reported.

Studies have already been made in to the proposal, Jahromi said, however no plans have been implemented because the Central Bank of Iran prohibits trading in cryptocurrency.

The announcement coincides with the start of the first package of US sanctions against Iran which came into effect on Tuesday and targets the Iranian banking system, including Iran’s purchase of of the US dollar, gold trading and the sale of government bonds. A second package of sanctions are due to be imposed in November.

US President Donald Trump announced in May Washington’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal signed with Tehran and the plan to reimpose sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

Read: EU determined to protect companies from US sanctions on Iran