Protests erupted within the Iranian capital Tehran on Monday because the rial hit a record low against the U.S. dollar, a currency plunge that locals blame on the central bank's poor financial policies as they watch the worth of their life savings shrink.
Although there isn’t any single solution to Iranians' economic plight, Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley suggested that Bitcoin (BTC) is a way for people world wide to guard themselves from falling currency values.
“Economic Mismanagement – The Story of the Past, Present and Future “Bitcoin is a brand new way for people to guard themselves,” Horsley said in a post to X on Monday.
The rial has lost over 40% of its purchasing power for the reason that two-week war with Israel in June and is now at a record low of about 1.4 million per US dollar, the Financial Times noted. Alex Gladstein, chief strategy officer on the Bitcoin-focused Human Rights Foundation, identified: “The official rate within the early Eighties was **70 per dollar**.”
The governor of Iran's central bank, Mohammad Reza Farzin, has resigned within the wake of the protests, making the country's future much more uncertain.
1.42 million riyals per dollar
The official rate within the early Eighties was **70 per dollar** https://t.co/Sor7WEQnQ8
— Alex Gladstein 🌋 ⚡ (@gladstein) December 30, 2025
While cryptocurrency trading is allowed in Iran, the principles for self-custody of cryptocurrencies are less clear and Bitcoin mining is extremely regulated. VanEck research director Matthew Sigel noted that the federal government has discouraged locals from engaging in Bitcoin mining.
“It’s price remembering: Iran recently cracked down on unregistered Bitcoin mining, even offering residents money rewards for reporting their neighbors, just as demand for the shop of value skyrocketed.”
“Truly diabolical policy sequence. Who says Bitcoin isn't a luxury good?”
Strict Bitcoin mining rules have prevented Iranians from benefiting from incredibly low-cost electricity prices, which might allow them to mine Bitcoin for around $1,300 per BTC starting in October – a fraction of Bitcoin's current price of $87,600.
Source: Mike Pompeo
Eight Iranian banks are prone to going into liquidation
The Iranians are also affected by sweeping sanctions imposed on the theocracy over its nuclear program and for supporting terrorist groups within the region. As a result, they lose significant access to international financial networks and the US dollar and weaken the local banking sector.
In October, Iran's state-owned bank Melli collapsed, putting the assets of greater than 42 million Iranians in danger.
In February, Iran's central bank warned that eight more local banks were prone to being dissolved in the event that they didn’t implement reforms.
“If they usually are not reformed, we are going to head for dissolution and merger,” the Iranian central bank was reported to have said on the time.
To make matters worse, Iranian crypto exchange Nobitex suffered an $81 million hacker attack in June, and Iranian crypto flows fell 11% between then and July as a result of a series of conflicts with Israel.
