What happened in Iran? Let me break it down for you.

Imagine ten years ago you exchanged 1 million USD for Iranian Rials, and ten years later you exchange back to USD, only to find you have just 23,000 left. 97.7% of your wealth has evaporated into thin air. This isn’t something that market fluctuations can explain—this is a result of unchecked power, rampant corruption, and a nationwide wealth plunder fueled by excessive money printing.

Why is it so crazy? The key is to see where the tentacles of power reach. In Iran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is not just a military organization; it’s more like a giant leech firmly attached to the economic lifeline—controlling 40% of the country’s economy. Oil extraction, infrastructure projects, finance and trade, public services—wherever profit can be made, you’ll see their influence.

What about the profits that should flow into the national treasury and benefit the people? They are quietly diverted through opaque bidding processes, siphoned off via related-party transactions. The profit remittance ratio of enterprises under the IRGC is far below market standards, with large amounts of wealth accumulating in the hands of a few interest groups, severely hollowing out government fiscal revenue.

On one side is the overflowing pot of power and capital; on the other side, the national treasury is growing emptier. Running deficits has become the norm. Tax hikes? They would stir public resentment. Cutting spending? That would cut into the cake. After much thought, the most "worry-free" solution is to keep printing money.

In 2020, broad money supply increased by over 30% year-on-year—imagine, the market’s goods and services didn’t increase at all, yet suddenly there was so much more money in circulation. The result?疯狂贬值. In 2015, 1 USD could still be exchanged for 32,000 Rials. Ten years later, the black market exchange rate has surged to 1,450,000. A depreciation of 97.7%.

This hyperinflation-induced seigniorage is actually a form of hidden plunder—an invisible tax on everyone holding Rials. Savings shrink in inflation, middle-class wealth is looted, and even those once holding large sums can only watch helplessly as their assets vanish into thin air.

When currency loses credibility and wealth becomes insecure, social unrest becomes inevitable. This is not an accidental tragedy but the bitter fruit of unchecked power and rampant corruption. When the economic lifeline is controlled by unbalanced forces, and the printing press becomes a tool for filling holes, even the deepest reserves will be exhausted in this silent plunder.

Beyond sympathizing with the Iranian people, this should serve as a warning to others: such a tragedy really doesn’t have to be repeated.