Central Bank Governor Abdolnaser Hemmati has acknowledged that about $21 billion in export earnings has not returned to Iran's economy since the start of the previous Iranian year. Authorities have identified roughly $13 billion they expect eventually to recover, and Hemmati thanked the judiciary and other agencies for helping pursue the funds. The same report said about $195 million was traded daily through the official exchange center.

At the same time, Hemmati insists the country has plenty of foreign currency. The two claims sit uneasily together. A central bank with comfortable reserves would have less reason to mobilize the judiciary against exporters.

The missing earnings also say something about trust. Exporters who keep revenue abroad are betting against the toman and against the state's ability to protect their money at home. When the people closest to the country's hard currency choose not to bring it back, ordinary savers draw their own conclusions.