Iran has now jumped on the growing trend that is the mass adoption of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) by sovereign nations. Iran’s Central Bank has announced its plans to roll out the trial phase of the Iranian CBDC as Iran looks to leverage the innovations the growing crypto industry affords to revive certain aspects of its economy.
Iran Initiates CBDC Adaptation Trial Runs
According to reports from mainstream media across the Islamic country, the Central Bank Of Iran is now set to launch its prototype CBDC for test runs across the nation. Though unknown as of now, the timeline of the project’s initiation is very close, according to Central Bank spokesperson’s quoted statements by a local news outlet, Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA). This development emerges after four years since the initial revelation of the program.
Interestingly the Iranian government is now looking to CBDC, crypto, and its featured innovations to solve its nascent economic and developmental problems.
Mehran Moharamian, Central Bank of Iran’s deputy governor for IT has confirmed these speculations in his statement that revealed that the Islamic nation’s aim for developing the digital currency is to leverage the solutions and practicality the adoption of digital assets offer.
He noted that successful integration of the proprietary CBDC will help eliminate numerous inconsistencies in its finance framework and help decentralize the nation’s resources.
He concluded that other nations are already taking advantage of these unique opportunities that the digital assets class offers and are already reaping significant benefits. He said, It is time for Iran to join the digital currencies race should we elect to remain relevant in the global finance race.
Moharamian did not delve into details about the launch of the trial run, however, hints from his speech indicate a near-future timeline for project commencement.
Financial authorities based in Iran’s capital city Tehran had previously tasked the nation’s Informatics Services Corporation with the development of a national ‘digital coin’ far back in 2018, which was four years from now.
The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) is responsible for Iran’s automated banking and payments protocols and was charged with the mission to facilitate the development of the CBDC which will result in a radical revamp of the nation’s finance policies.
Despite media silence regarding the details of the project, the CBI has revealed how the Iranian CBDC was being developed. The authority explained that the CBDC was coded using the Hyperledger Fabric platform which is a pilot project of Hyperledger.
Iran To Leverage Blockchain Tech To Revive Stock Market
The majority of the cryptocurrency industry in Iran is largely unregulated with the mining sector being the only exception, however, the latest report sourced this week has hinted that the regulations status quo might feature radical changes in the nearest future. Indications from featured reports have revealed that the Iranian government is now looking to adopt technology that fuels the crypto space like blockchain tech among others.
Iranian Securities and Exchange Organization Chair, Majid Eshqi believes that the adaptation of blockchain tech in national finance will boost Iran’s economic growth to greater heights. He said that should the nation’s capital market adopt blockchain technologies, the current deficiencies in the finance sector and the needs of the share market will be complemented and met relatively.
He added that the adoption of technologies that underpin crypto will be a pivot to the revival of the Iranian economy, especially its stock market.
In the early start of the year, in January, mainstream media in Iran reported that authorities in Tehran planned to license Iranian-based companies to utilize crypto for cross-country transactions with their non-local partners. The Iranian government and regulatory authorities have approved the adoption of crypto payment gateways in the department of foreign trade.