TEHRAN, April 22 (Xinhua) -- The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) on Sunday banned all banks and credit institutions from handling crypto-currencies, including Bitcoin, Financial Tribune reported.
The ban obligates money exchangers to refrain from "any measures that will facilitate or promote virtual currencies," in addition to buying or selling them.
Prior to the directive published on Sunday, the central bank had not prohibited the use of crypto-currencies by law and only sought to warn people of the potential risks.
The CBI warned all potential violators of the new regulations that they will be met with disciplinary action "based on related rules and regulations."
The decision to ban all monetary and financial institutions from using Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies had been taken earlier at the 30th meeting of Iran's High Council of Anti-Money Laundering.
