Bitcoin price rose on Monday following news that France cut cryptocurrencies taxes by 50%.
Bitcoin was trading at $9,370.4.9 by 11:51PM ET (03:51GMT) on the Bitfinex exchange, up 1.1% over the previous 24 hours.
XRP/USD’s XRP token climbed 2.6% higher to $0.85850 on the Poloniex exchange.
Meanwhile, Litecoin added 0.9% to $151.67.
Cryptocurrencies are now taxed at 19% in France, significantly lower compared to the previous taxes, while profits are now categorized as “Movable Property.”
Reports that Iran developed its own blockchain-based cryptocurrency also garnered some attention, as the news came just days after the country’s central bank banned bitcoin trading amid escalating concerns on money-laundering and volatility of such digital coins.
The new Iranian cryptocurrency was jointly developed by the Central Bank of Iran, the state-run Post Bank, and Iran’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) ministry, according to reports.
“Last week in a joint meeting aimed at exploring the progress of the project, it was announced that the experimental model is ready,” Mohammad Javad Azari-Jahromi, the country’s information and communications technology minister said.
Azari-Jahromi then noted that Iran’s bitcoin ban does not mean the country is completely against virtual currencies, and pointed out that the Central Bank’s ban does not cover local cryptocurrencies.
“The Central Bank’s ban does not mean the prohibition or restriction on the use of the digital currency in domestic development,” he said.