U.S. sanctions Iran crypto exchange Nobitex over IRGC links

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, on Tuesday, accusing the platform and several executives of helping Tehran evade sanctions and fund the IRGC.

The order also named three other Iranian digital-asset exchanges, according to the Treasury notice. Treasury said the action falls under Economic Fury, the Trump administration’s drive to tighten financial pressure on Iran through banks and digital assets.

Nobitex was the central target. Treasury said the exchange handled more than 50 per cent of Iranian digital-asset inflows in 2025 and gave sanctioned Iranian actors another route to move money despite U.S. restrictions.

Reuters reported that U.S. officials accused Nobitex of helping Iran’s central bank and the IRGC move hundreds of millions of dollars through digital assets. The account added details beyond the notice. The legal action itself rests on Washington’s formal designation.

Bessent framed the case as a follow-the-money action against channels outside normal banking.

“As promised, Treasury will continue to follow the money in support of Economic Fury, whether it is through the banking system or through digital assets,” Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury secretary, said in a statement.

The designation freezes any U.S.-linked property controlled by the named entities and generally bars Americans from doing business with them. Foreign banks, brokers and exchanges often cut off sanctioned parties as well to avoid running afoul of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

For Washington, the sanctions pull digital-asset venues further into its Iran pressure campaign. Iranian authorities and Nobitex did not immediately respond to the Treasury allegations in the source material reviewed for this brief.