Removal of Four Zeros from Iranian National Currency Approved

Kokcha News Agency:  In today’s public session, the Iranian Parliament reviewed and approved the objections raised by the Guardian Council regarding the amendment to the Monetary and Banking Law (removal of four zeros from the national currency). The bill was passed with 144 votes in favor, 108 against, and 3 abstentions out of 262 present representatives.

The approved bill includes the following key amendments:

Single Article: The phrase “which is equivalent to 10,000 current Rials and equal to 100 Qirans” is added to the end of Clause A of Article 58 of the Central Bank Law of the Islamic Republic of Iran, dated March 30, 2023. Additionally, five notes are appended to this article:

Note 1: The exchange rate of foreign currencies against the Rial and the buying and selling rates of foreign exchange shall be calculated and determined by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran within the framework of the prevailing exchange rate system, taking into account the country’s foreign exchange reserves and legal obligations.

Note 2: The parallel circulation and simultaneous validity of the Rial and the current Rial, referred to as the transition period in this law, shall not exceed three years, subject to Note 4 of this article. The method of collecting and the conditions for withdrawing current Rial banknotes and coins from circulation shall be determined or implemented in accordance with the provisions of Clauses (Kha) and (Dal) of this article.

Note 3: After the end of the transition period, obligations previously created based on the current Rial unit shall be fulfilled only in the Rial unit or its components (Qirans).

Note 4: The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran is obliged to prepare the necessary executive arrangements for the start of the transition period within two years from the effective date of this law. The Central Bank is required to announce the start of the transition period publicly through the Official Gazette, electronic portals, and the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).

Note 5: The executive by-law of this article shall be prepared by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran within three months from the effective date and, after approval by the Supreme Council, shall be ratified by the Council of Ministers.