Iran starts using crypto for international trade settlements

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Mon, 27 Mar 2023, 01:22 AM
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Iran starts using crypto for international trade settlements

The $10 million import order is going to be the first of many international trades that the country will settle with crypto.

Tehran, Iran / Image by: Wikimedia Commons

Wed, 10 Aug 2022, 14:48 pm UTC

Iran has officially started using crypto for its imports. While it was not specified if the country used Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH) for a recent import order, reports say that the country plans to widely use cryptocurrencies and smart contracts for its international trades by the end of September this year.

After decades of struggling with economic sanctions, a senior government official revealed that Iran has placed its first international import order using crypto. In a Twitter post on Tuesday, August 9, Iran’s Deputy Minister of Industry, Mine & Trade Alireza Peyman-Pak said that the first import order using crypto is worth $10 million.

However, the government official did not elaborate on what kind of imported goods was involved in the trade. It was also not disclosed if the Iranian government used Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), or any other crypto for the transaction.

What’s interesting is that the $10 million import order is going to be the first of many international trades that the country will settle with crypto. The minister added that his government plans to widely use crypto and smart contracts for international trades by September this year.

“This week, the first official import order was successfully placed with cryptocurrency worth 10 million dollars,” Alireza Peyman-Pak posted on Twitter, Bitcoin.com reported. “By the end of September, the use of cryptocurrencies and smart contracts will be widespread in foreign trade with target countries.”

Until early this year, Iran was the most sanctioned country in the world, according to Cointelegraph. The country’s main trading partners where it sources most of its imports are China, Turkey, India, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

However, another country eclipsed Iran starting in February this year. Russia now occupies the top spot as the most sanctioned country in the world after its invasion of Ukraine.

For more than a year, Iran has been mulling on the possibility of using cryptocurrencies to pay for imports. In August 2021, the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) announced that banks and licensed crypto exchanges can use cryptocurrencies mined by licensed miners in Iran to pay for imports.

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