On December 9, according to Bitcoin.com, economist Mohammad Sadegh Alhosseini said that the value of Iran’s cryptocurrency holdings is between US$30 billion and US$50 billion, accounting for approximately one-third of the country’s gold market. Daily cryptocurrency trading volume in Iran is approximately $143 million (100 trillion rials). The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) and the Finance Ministry are developing measures to increase transparency in the cryptocurrency market, which has been used to circumvent U.S. sanctions on international banking. On Saturday, the CBI released a policy paper aimed at aligning cryptocurrency trading with Iran’s anti-money laundering and tax laws. Alhosseini warned that tighter regulation could subject companies that evade sanctions to U.S. penalties, which would hold the CBI accountable. He suggested that private entities could play a role in organizing markets and reducing the risk of direct government oversight.