Iranian Google searches are showing exponential growth in Bitcoin related searches due to the ongoing escalation of conflict in the region with USA and its allies in the Middle East. Recently on January 8, the search result showed 4500% increase in the search “Bitcoin Iran” in the first seven days of the 2020. Across the world as gold and other safe havens’ prices increased, there was also 250% increase worldwide in searches related to Bitcoin itself accompanied by a 15% price rally during this time frame.
Nigeria remained the country where Bitcoin was searched the most while other countries like the United States, Singapore and Canada also experienced a sizeable increase in search stats. The biggest uptick, however, was observed in Iran itself with a whopping 5000% increase observed in some searches. The increase in interest in Bitcoin is mostly being attributed to the Iran-US escalation after the US assassinated Omer Sulemani, a top Iranian commander while Iran itself responded by symbolically hitting US military positions in Iraq. During this exchange, all the traditional safe havens like Gold, Silver, etc saw their worth increase in double digit percentage. Bitcoin soon followed as well and posted a healthy 15% increase in prices itself. Bitcoin is increasingly following the price behaviours of precious metals like Gold and that is a good sign because people are starting to trust it.
Bitcoin, however is not a mainstream safe haven due to its increasing, yet limited public penetration. But, because US Dollar and Gold are both in limited supply in Iran due the crippling economic sanctions placed by the USA, Iranians are increasingly considering viable alternatives to these conventional safe bets. The lure of investing in Bitcoin will increase in the near future as USA is ramping up its economic pressure in the oil-producing country by introducing new sanctions on the top government officials of the country.
However, Iranians can face difficulty safely accessing Bitcoin sellers and buyers as localbitcoins.com and a few other P2P Bitcoin platforms have announced the cessation of services in the country due to the unilateral American sanctions. However, several other unhindered ways of obtaining and storing Bitcoin are always there. Mining is also another feature that cannot be controlled by mere sanctions on a country. Iranians are increasingly investing in mining equipment to help accumulate valuable Bitcoin that is as good as foreign currency.
All in all, it was a good week for the future of Bitcoin. Sanctions-hit countries are always seen as great opportunities for Bitcoin to rise and showcase its practicality as a robust currency.
Image source: pixabay.com
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