Iran issues 1,000 crypto mining licences

Officials in Tehran have issued 1,000 licences for cryptocurrency mining, according to state media.

The Iranian government is investing heavily in cryptocurrency as it looks to find an alternative source of income as stringent US sanctions continue to cripple the economy.

Amir-Hossein Saeedi Naeeni, a member of the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Guild Organisation’s blockchain commission, told PressTV that government regulations have forced some miners to leave the country.

“The laws announced by government institutions for crypto mining are very strict in comparison to other industries in the country, causing many miners to stop operating or migrate to the regional countries for investment,” he said.

He added: “The digital mining industry, beside bringing currency into the country, can facilitate trade where traders can use cryptocurrencies to import goods and bypass payment problems resulting from the banking sanctions.”

Cryptocurrency trading remains illegal in Iran.

Last week, Coin Rivet reported that Chinese miners are fleeing Iran amid tensions between Washington and Tehran over the US assassination of a top Iranian official and an Iranian attack on an American military base.

Chinese crypto news site Jinse Caijing says the US-Iran crisis is forcing Chinese miners to decide between staying in Iran or leaving the country.

The report states many Chinese miners moved their farms to Iran in 2019 when Bitcoin’s price hit $3,000 as the country’s electricity is cheaper than mainland China’s.

But when the US-Iran crisis hit and electricity prices spiked, many Chinese miners sold their mining rigs to locals.

“Chinese people in Iran are heartbroken,” said Lao Hu, a Chinese miner who operates in the country.

Iran recently offered a bounty to anyone who exposes the illegal mining of cryptocurrency.

In summer 2019, the Iranian government launched a crackdown on the illegal use of subsidised electricity for mining currencies like Bitcoin.