Lioncomputer is an Iranian computing hardware company that has been operating since 2004. Yasser Ahmadi of Lioncomputer told news.Bitcoin.com that Lioncomputer has sought to actively engage with the Iranian bitcoin mining community, stating that since 2013, the company “has supported miners through mining forums and provid[ed] them with the latest mining hardware.” Mr. Ahmadi claims that Lioncomputing has been “the biggest online hardware shopping website in Iran [since] 2013.”

Also Read: Digital Currency Regulations Coming Soon to Iran

Lioncomputer Is One of Few Merchants Accepting Bitcoin in Iran

According to Mr. Ahmadi, import sanctions have made it difficult for Iranian miners to keep up with technological innovation in the mining industry. Mr. Ahmadi states that “there’s very little use of ASIC miners… here in Iran. Because of import difficulties and the price of the ASIC miners, most miners are using GPU. Mr. Ahmadi claims that Lioncomputer “supplies around 90% of the hardware used in the [Iranian] mining market.”

Mr. Ahmadi described that the lack of goods available for purchase with bitcoin in Iran as the primary inspiration for Lioncomputer’s decision to accept bitcoin payments. Mr. Ahmadi told news.Bitcoin.com “as miners were looking for a way to spend their bitcoins and there was nowhere to spend it in Iran at all, Lioncomputer decided to accept bitcoin.”

Iranian State Representatives Are Expected to Attend an Upcoming Bitcoin and Blockchain Event

On October 17, Iran’s national library conference hall is scheduled to host BTCday, an event designed to promote bitcoin and distributed ledger technology that was conceived by Lioncomputer and held with support from Iranian exchanges Starsoheil.com and Payment24.ir. Mr. Ahmadi says that the event hopes to make blockchain and cryptocurrency more accessible through facilitating opportunities for ordinary Iranians to explore distributed ledger and cryptocurrency technology. Mr. Ahmadi adds that the response to the event has surpassed his expectations, stating that “tickets were all sold out within 72 hours, and we are still having ticket requests from people and companies.” Mr. Ahmadi states that there will be “700 participants [at the] event, 500 in the conference hall and 200 viewers online.”

Mr. Ahmadi states that “central bank representatives, governmental and personal organizations, as well as Iranian cyber-police” are expected to attend the event. BTCday is expected to address a wide range of topics relevant to cryptocurrency, including bitcoin’s history, mining, ICOs, legal issues, and trading basics.

Iran’s Economic Sanctions Have Long Been Seen by Many as a Likely Catalyst for Increased Bitcoin Adoption

With the sanctions severely limiting the economic opportunities available to Iranian businesses and citizens, bitcoin’s fluidity and borderless nature have been expected to attract the interest of Iranians.

One example of bitcoin’s potential use-cases in Iran is that of Iranian investment firm, Brave New World Investments (BNWI), who, earlier this year, successfully incorporated in Sweden despite failing to possess a bank account. BNWI used bitcoin as a means to prove the company’s liquidity, thus bypassing sanctions in Iran. Madeleine Idvardsson, of the Swedish Companies Registration Office, told media “we examined whether it would be possible to use bitcoin as a non-cash property, and we found that it would be possible.”

In June, Iran’s National Center of Cyberspace (NCC) announced that it had drafted a proposal for virtual currency legislation, claiming that the regulations were expected to be passed by the High Council on Cyberspace within the next four months. Iranian English-language media organization, The Financial Tribune, stated that “the widening use of digital currency, specifically bitcoin, in recent years has prompted officials to implement regulatory measures,” suggesting that an increase in Iranian bitcoin and cryptocurrency adoption had comprised the catalyst for the development of the regulatory draft proposal.

Do you think that more Iranian companies will start to use and accept bitcoin as a means of payment? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

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Samuel Haig

Samuel Haig is a journalist who has been completely obsessed with bitcoin and cryptocurrency since 2012. Samuel lives in Tasmania, Australia, where he attended the University of Tasmania and majored in Political Science, and Journalism, Media & Communications. Samuel has written about the dialectics of decentralization, and is also a musician and kangaroo riding enthusiast.