As the Iranian rial plummeted to a historic low against the US dollar, large-scale protests erupted in Tehran, with protesters attributing the currency's continued depreciation to long-term fiscal and monetary policy failures by the central bank. In response, Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley stated on the X platform that economic mismanagement persists in the past, present, and future, and that Bitcoin offers ordinary people worldwide a new way to protect their wealth amidst significant fiat currency devaluation. Reports indicate that since the two-week conflict with Israel in June, the Iranian rial's purchasing power has shrunk by over 40%, with the current official exchange rate at approximately 1.4 million rials to one US dollar. Alex Gladstein, Chief Strategy Officer of the Bitcoin Human Rights Foundation, also noted that in the early 1980s, the official Iranian exchange rate was only 70 rials to one US dollar, highlighting the dramatic depreciation. Meanwhile, the governor of the Central Bank of Iran resigned under pressure from protests, further exacerbating market uncertainty. Furthermore, while Iran allows cryptocurrency trading, self-custody and mining are strictly regulated. Matthew Sigel, Research Director at VanEck, pointed out that Iran recently cracked down on unregistered Bitcoin mining activities and even encouraged residents to report their neighbors. Analysts believe that amid sanctions, pressure on the banking system, and continued currency depreciation, discussion surrounding Bitcoin as a decentralized store of value is rising. (Cointelegraph)