The $4 billion Iran sanctions evasion network through crypto

The United States has sanctioned Iranian exchanges, frozen nearly $1 billion in cryptocurrency, and traced $3.84 billion in Iran-linked flows through a single offshore exchange, exposing the scale of sanctions evasion through digital assets. Summary The US Treasury has sanctioned four Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges, including Nobitex, which handles approximately 50% of Iran’s crypto trading volume, as part of Operation Economic Fury launched in April 2026. Treasury has seized or frozen nearly $1 billion in cryptocurrency from Iranian exchanges and wallets since the US-Israeli strikes on Tehran in February, including a $344 million USDT freeze in April and a $131 million freeze in July. The Wall Street Journal reported that Iran-linked entities moved more than $3.84 billion through crypto exchange CoinEx since 2019, with investigators tracing flows from Central Bank of Iran wallets that connected to the North Korean Bybit hack. Chainalysis estimated that Iranian crypto outflows reached $4.18 billion in 2025, a 70% year over year increase, as the rial collapsed and citizens sought alternatives to the sanctioned banking system. The enforcement campaign reveals both the capabilities ...