Iran Caps Dollar Purchases At $1,000 Per Day Amid Sanctions-Hit Economy

Iran has issued a new guideline to buy US dollars from banks as the country's financial system is strained due to sanctions.

According to Fars news agency, under the latest rules for banks and exchange offices, buyers may purchase up to $10,000 in total, capped at $1,000 per day. For smaller amounts, customers can use their bank card and national ID to request between $100 and $1,000.

Selected bank branches and exchange offices still sell US dollar banknotes at the official rate. Applicants request the currency through designated systems.

On October 22, one US dollar traded at 262,000 Iranian riyals, up from about 135,000 at the start of the year.

This follows last week's announcement by the United States of new Iran-related sanctions targeting 16 individuals and 10 entities, with the US Treasury Department saying the measures aim to disrupt Tehran's alleged international financial networks, shadow banking operations and channels used to finance its military and regional proxy groups.

The sanctions were announced on Thursday (local time) as Washington continues to tighten economic pressure on Tehran amid a continuing standoff between the two countries and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration would continue targeting Iran's financial lifelines until the country's leadership could no longer use them to sustain its activities.

In a post on X, Bessent said, "The noose is tightening around Iran's economy, and not even Iran's so-called allies can save it. The Department of the Treasury will not relent until the Iranian regime's coffers are empty and every remaining financial lifeline sustaining its war machine has been severed.

In another post on X, the US Treasury Department said the latest action, carried out under Operation Economic Outcast, targeted Iran's alleged efforts to access the international financial system through an Iraqi bank that it alleged also supported Iranian-backed militia groups.

"By dismantling these institutions--including offshore banks and shadow financiers that have moved hundreds of millions of dollars through shell companies and foreign-exchange specialists across the Middle East and Asia--Treasury is severing critical revenue streams that sustain Iran's military and proxy forces," the department said. 

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