Treasury Freezes $130 Million in Crypto Linked to Iran's Central Bank

The U.S. Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on multiple cryptocurrency wallets linked to Iran's central bank, freezing over $130 million in digital assets. The action, announced by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on X (formerly Twitter), aims to disrupt Iran's illicit financial activities and misuse of digital assets.

In a statement, Secretary Bessent emphasized the Treasury's commitment to disrupting and degrading Iran's illicit financial activities, including the misuse of digital assets. He added that the U.S. will continue to aggressively track the flow of funds and ensure the Iranian regime cannot access proceeds generated from its illicit schemes.

The sanctions targeted multiple wallets linked to Iran's central bank, with some reports indicating that wallets on the Tron network holding the stablecoin USDT were included. The freeze highlights the growing use of cryptocurrencies by Iran as a means to circumvent international financial sanctions.

According to research by blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis, Iran-linked wallets received a record $7.8 billion in cryptocurrency in 2025. Meanwhile, TRM Labs estimated the total value of Iran-related cryptocurrency transactions that year at approximately $10 billion.