TEHRAN- The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) officially banned the use of cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin, in financial transactions.

The act is to prevent crimes such as money laundering and terrorism, the Public Relations Department of CBI announced.

The ban applies to all monetary and financial centers of the country, including banks, financial institutes and currency exchange offices.

Last December, the Head of Iran’s Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO) Shapour Mohammadi said trading bitcoin in the country’s brokerages is illegal.

“The SEO is reviewing Bitcoin’s status for entering the country's economy and has not yet reached a conclusion, so if any brokerage buys or sells the cryptocurrency, it violates the law”, the official said at the time.

Though cryptocurrencies have never been authorized in Iran, they were available in parallel markets.

Cryptocurrencies are created and exchanged independent of banks or governments. Transactions are typically anonymous but the currency can be converted into cash when deposited into accounts at prices set in online trading.

MA