U.S. Sanctions Nobitex and Iranian Crypto Exchanges Under 'Economic Fury'
The U.S. Treasury Department has officially sanctioned Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. Three other Iranian trading platforms were also targeted.
This aggressive move is part of the Trump administration’s “Economic Fury” campaign. The initiative aims to completely disrupt Tehran’s global financial and digital asset networks.
Nobitex Accused of Massive Sanctions Evasion
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) stated that Nobitex processed over 50% of all Iranian digital asset inflows in 2025.
U.S. officials claim the platform plays a central role in:
- Evading international economic sanctions.
- Financing designated terrorist organizations.
- Processing transactions linked directly to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Iranian Crypto Executives Face Strict Penalties
The new U.S. sanctions directly target Nobitex’s core leadership team. This includes chairman and co-founder Amir Hossein Rad and current CEO Seyed Ali Khoee.
Sanctions were also placed on co-founders Ali and Mohammad Kharrazi. A recent Reuters investigation revealed these brothers are related to Iran’s supreme leadership. The report showed that hundreds of millions of dollars from sanctioned entities flowed directly through their platform.
Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex Blacklisted
“While Iran’s economy is in free fall, the regime has chosen to co-opt digital asset technologies for its own corrupt agenda.” — U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent
Alongside Nobitex, the U.S. Treasury blacklisted three other prominent Iranian exchanges: Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex. OFAC alleges that all three platforms actively facilitated crypto transactions for the IRGC.
Discrepancy Over Seized Iranian Crypto Assets
Nobitex has long been the backbone of Iran’s crypto ecosystem, previously avoiding direct Western sanctions.
This enforcement action comes just a week after Treasury Secretary Bessent claimed the U.S. had seized $1 billion in Iranian crypto assets. However, Tuesday’s official Treasury announcement reverted to earlier estimates, stating the government has seized “nearly $500 million” to date.
