Rubber Checks Bring Bad News

The number of checks passed by banks declined sharply in the month to April 18, marking the first month of current fiscal year (March) and coinciding with the Persian New Year holiday season and when the coronavirus started hammering domestic businesses.
Checkbook holders wrote 6.1 million checks worth 652 trillion rials ($3.7 billion) during the month, down 36% in number and 56.4% decline in value compared to the month before.
Apart from the virus, the disturbing decline in check payments can be explained in part by the closure of retail business in during the annual holidays. 
However, bad checks were expected to also fall in proportion to the overall drawn checks, but recent data from the Central Bank of Iran shows that bounced checks moved in the opposite direction and jumped in number for the second month in a row, again reflecting the economic downturn born out of the deadly disease.