Share this article
Iranian Lawmaker Says Bitcoin Should Be Central Bank's Turf
An Iranian lawmaker wants his country’s central bank to take bitcoin seriously.
By Danny Nelson
Updated Sep 14, 2021, 8:47 a.m. Published Jun 2, 2020, 9:00 p.m.
An Iranian lawmaker wants his country’s central bank to take bitcoin seriously.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
Representative Mohammad Hossein Farhangi (Tabriz), speaking Tuesday before the nation’s parliament, called on the Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, Abdolnaser Hemmati, to handle oversight of bitcoin, according to the Tasnim news agency.
Calling proper management of bitcoin a “good opportunity for the country,” Farhangi warned against ceding its potential to financial institutions. "Take the issue of bitcoin seriously,” he said.
Iran has been taking crypto seriously on several fronts. Parliament moved to enact restrictive currency smuggling laws in late May. Around that time, President Hassan Rouhani ordered his government to begin devising a national crypto mining strategy and accompanying regulatory regime. The Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade also licensed Iran's largest bitcoin mining operation in May.
But Farhangi, who sits on the Industries and Mines committee, thinks Iran’s mining hyperfocus leaves much to be desired in its treatment of cryptocurrencies.
“We do not understand that the government has entrusted the monitoring of bitcoins to the Ministry of Industry and Mines,” he said, “because the central bank must oversee digital currencies.”
Iran has been tiptoeing towards broader cryptocurrency adoption despite signals that the Central Bank might try to ban payment via bitcoin. Some in the financially ostracized country also reportedly see cryptocurrency as a means to evade sanctions.
Editor’s note: Statements in this article have been translated from Farsi.
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
Japan’s Higher Rates Puts Bitcoin in the Crosshairs of a Yen Carry Unwind
A stronger yen typically coincides with de-risking across macro portfolios, and that dynamic could tighten liquidity conditions that recently helped bitcoin rebound from November’s lows.
What to know:
- The Bank of Japan is expected to raise interest rates to 0.75% at its December meeting, the highest since 1995, affecting global markets including cryptocurrencies.
- A stronger yen could lead to de-risking in macro portfolios, impacting liquidity conditions that have supported bitcoin's recent recovery.
- Governor Kazuo Ueda indicated a high probability of a rate hike, with officials prepared for further tightening if their economic outlook supports it.
Top Stories
