Iranian exchange houses can trade the rial freely, the Central Bank of Iran said on Sunday, unexpectedly lifting restrictions introduced earlier this year. At the end of January, the CBI imposed an official exchange rate of 12,260 rials to dollar to try to stamp out trade on a black market in which the rate had risen above 18,000.
The unofficial dollar rate has now reached more than 19,000 rials as Iranians continue to seek hard currency, given fears of further devaluation of the rial due to soaring inflation and tightening sanctions against Iran.
"For the purpose of meeting customers' needs, licensed foreign exchange houses are permitted to implement agreed rates with regard to buying and selling," the CBI said on its website. The rial has slumped since the end of last year following increasing speculation Israel and the United States may launch strikes against Iran's sites which they suspect to be part of a programme to develop nuclear weapons.