Iran Blocks 9,200 Bank Accounts Over Suspicious Foreign Currency, Crypto Transactions – Regulation Bitcoin News

Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence has reportedly blocked almost 10,000 bank accounts over suspicious foreign currency and cryptocurrency transactions. The action was carried out in collaboration with the country’s central bank.

9.219 Bank Accounts Blocked

Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence issued a statement Saturday stating that it has blocked a number of bank accounts due to suspicious foreign currency and cryptocurrency transactions, local media reported. This is what the ministry said:

The total number of 9,219 accounts in 545 bank accounts were blocked.

In the statement it is stated that there was a total transaction value of over 60 trillion Iranian dollars blocked. That’s approximately $2 billion, based on daily dollar exchange rates in Iran. Iran’s currency recently hit a four-month low against the U.S. dollar.

But, they did not give any information about the accounts and how much was digital currency.

The Ministry of Intelligence’s action was carried out by the order of a judge and in collaboration with the country’s central bank. It was part of the Iranian government’s recent plan to combat illegal and unauthorized foreign currency and cryptocurrency transactions. In December last year, the ministry announced that it froze bank accounts of more than 700 “illegal” foreign exchange traders in the country.

Iran also has a crackdown on cryptocurrency mining. Over 7,000 illegal mining operations have been shut down by authorities in the two-year period. New rules have been drafted by the Iranian government to improve penalties for illegal cryptocurrency mining. This includes additional prison sentences.

Let us know your thoughts on Iran’s decision to block bank accounts due to suspicious cryptocurrency transactions. Please comment below.

Kevin Helms

Kevin is a graduate of Austrian Economics. He discovered Bitcoin in 2011, and has been an advocate ever since. He’s interested in Bitcoin security, open source systems, network effects, cryptography, and how economics intersect with cryptography.