Iran's Deputy Prosecutor: Number of Buyers of Government-Sold Coins is Less than 150

An Iranian judicial official stated that the total number of individuals who purchased coins under the government's pre-sale scheme for Bahar Azadi coins is less than 150. The government of Hassan Rouhani has pre-sold over 'seven million coins' in recent months to control the rising prices of coins, but this measure failed to stabilize the market and instead exacerbated disruptions in the gold market. Reports indicate that the Bahar Azadi coin briefly surpassed three million tomans on Tuesday but eventually fell back to around two million and 970 thousand tomans. Mohammad Mosaddegh, the Deputy Prosecutor General, mentioned in a press conference on Tuesday, July 12, that 'it seems there was a lack of foresight in this matter. When it was announced that coins would be available through the Central Bank and people could come to purchase them, a number of people came and bought, but the number of buyers of all these coins is less than 150. It is clear that something is hidden behind the scenes.' He then described this situation as an instance of 'disrupting the economic order of the country' and emphasized that the judiciary will 'definitely deal with the offenders.' Previously, the head of the country's inspection organization stated that in the pre-sale scheme, 50 individuals purchased around 380 thousand coins, which is five percent of the total coins, and made about one million tomans profit from each coin. This judicial official later reported that a 31-year-old man had purchased 38,250 coins, paying 53 billion and 550 million tomans for them. The wave of instability in the foreign currency and coin markets, intensified by the announcement of the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear agreement and the imminent return of sanctions against Iran, has led to widespread strikes and protests among merchants and market residents. The Deputy Prosecutor General also referred to individuals and companies that received currency at the official rate but either did not engage in imports or sold their goods at free market prices. He referred to these individuals and companies as 'currency offenders' and stated that 'the harshest penalties have been considered by the legislator for those who disrupt the economic system of the country.' He added, 'If the court determines that corruption on earth is established for the perpetrator, the death penalty is foreseen, and if not established, up to twenty years of imprisonment is provided for offenders in this law.' This judicial official clarified that 'the Attorney General's Office is seriously involved and will definitely deal with those who intend to disrupt the economic system of the country.' The rates of various foreign currencies, especially the dollar, have surged in recent weeks in Iran, currently fluctuating between eight thousand to nine thousand tomans. The Iranian government has set a single exchange rate to counter U.S. sanctions aimed at targeting Iran's oil industry, pricing each U.S. dollar at 4,200 tomans. On the other hand, police and judicial actions have been initiated to combat brokers and currency exchange offices to prevent the formation of a black market, but these actions have faced failure, to the extent that the Iranian Minister of Economy announced that a secondary currency market is set to be established by this Thursday to meet small needs.