Iran’s rial collapse mirrors Lebanon’s crisis, driving citizens to bitcoin

Iran's official currency, the rial, is experiencing a collapse marked by hyperinflation and sanctions, drawing parallels to Lebanon's financial crisis that began in late 2019. In Lebanon, citizens saw their dollar savings locked and devalued, leading to a desperate search for value, which Bitcoin provided as a financial safe haven. Similarly, Iranians are bypassing local banks, moving billions into the domestic crypto ecosystem, with on-chain data showing a shift toward self-custody wallets to protect assets from inflation and potential seizures. While the Iranian government sends mixed signals on crypto, citizens view Bitcoin as a tool that bypasses state control and border restrictions, while stablecoins are used for daily transactions. The article strongly suggests that Iranians can learn from Lebanon's experience, emphasizing the importance of self-custody, backing up seed phrases, and building peer-to-peer networks to survive the collapse of centralized finance, as waiting for government fixes proved futile in Lebanon.

(Source：CoinDesk)