Costly, Useless, Theatrical

TEHRAN (Iran News) With this resolution, the fate of the zeros on the banknotes has finally been decided, and in the future we will have to say goodbye to the zeros on our bills.

Previously, in Mordad 1404 (July–August 2025), Mohammad Reza Farzin, the Governor of the Central Bank, had said about removing four zeros from the national currency:

While the national monetary unit of the country is the rial, in practice the people use the word toman and do not use the term rial in their transactions and conversations. Therefore, the national currency will be the toman, and its smaller unit will be the qeran.

According to him, with the increase of inflation and the fall of the current value of money, the ratio of the value of the national currency to foreign currencies has declined in a shocking way, and this has damaged national pride. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the extra zeros from the national currency in order to restore national pride.

Thus, Clause A of Article 58 of the Central Bank Law of the Islamic Republic of Iran was amended in Parliament as follows:

The phrase “which is equal to 10,000 current rials and equivalent to 100 qerans” was added to the end of Clause A of Article 58 of the Central Bank Law of the Islamic Republic of Iran, ratified on 30/03/1402 (June 19, 2023), and five notes (sub-articles) were added to this article as follows:

Note 1: The exchange rate of foreign currencies against the rial and the purchase and sale rates of foreign exchange by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran shall be calculated and determined within the framework of the prevailing exchange-rate system and in compliance with the country’s foreign-exchange reserves and legal obligations.

Note 2: The period of parallel circulation and simultaneous validity of the rial and the current rial — called the transitional period in this law — shall be a maximum of three years, in compliance with Note 4 of this article. The method of collecting and conditions for withdrawing the current rial banknotes and coins from circulation shall be determined and implemented in accordance with clauses (kh) and (d) of this article.

Note 3: After the end of the transitional period, obligations that were previously created based on the current rial shall be settled only with the rial or its subdivisions, the qeran.

Note 4: The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran is required, within two years from the date this law comes into force, to make the necessary executive arrangements to begin the transitional period. The Central Bank is obliged to publicly announce the start of the transitional period through the official gazette, electronic portals, and the national radio and television (IRIB).

Note 5: The executive bylaw of this article shall be prepared by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran within three months from the date this law comes into force and, after the approval of the High Council, shall be ratified by the Cabinet.

Now, with this resolution, the Parliament has changed the form of money, but the value of money continues to decline toward insignificance.

The blight of entrenched inflation in the structure of the national economy is day by day gnawing away at people’s livelihoods and the nation’s economic vitality, like a moth, while everyone sits and watches.

The Seventh Development Plan has, for a year now, been gathering dust in the potholes of drafting executive directives under the government’s indifference.

This resolution of Parliament has solved none of the crushing problems of high living costs for the people; instead, it has increased the costs of changing software systems and the structure of accounting for both the public and the state.

If only Parliament, instead of passing this resolution, had compelled the government to expedite the implementation of the Seventh Plan. The government is observing the economy instead of managing it.

The most optimistic accusation that can be leveled at this government in this regard is the term indifference.

This bloated, costly, sluggish, and exhausted government not only fails to alleviate the suffering of the people’s purchasing power but adds to their crushing burdens day by day.

Now Parliament has given it yet another four-zero distraction to be busy with for five years.