Iran moves to practical phase of testing state digital currencyA representative of the CBI's payment system oversight department said that the agency is ready to move into the practical application phase of the digital version of the Iranian rial. The digital currency issued by the CBI has been distributed to a limited number of state and commercial banks that have the necessary infrastructure and are ready to provide relevant services to the public.
"The rules governing the circulation of digital rials are the same as those for banknotes," said a CBI spokesman.
The Central Bank of Iran said it would start testing the digital rial in 2022. At the time, it was reported that CBI's digital currency was not intended to compete with global cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin or ether.
CBI's stated goal is to turn "cryptocurrency" into a digital version of the national fiat currency. Nevertheless, a number of industry experts suggested that the launch of the digital rial would allow Iran to take advantage of the new form of state currency to circumvent U.S. sanctions.
Earlier, the Central Bank of Iran announced its participation in a project to create a gold-backed Persian stabelcoin, which will be used in foreign trade settlements instead of the dollar, the ruble and the Iranian rial.
