Blockchain analytics firm Arkham has built a public, searchable map of crypto wallets it links to Iran’s central bank — a move that puts Tehran’s alleged digital holdings in plain sight of investigators and anyone else curious enough to look.
How Iran Moves Money Through CryptoStablecoin issuer Tether confirmed it had frozen the funds at the request of US authorities, citing activity tied to unlawful conduct, without naming Iran directly in its public statement.
Arkham published its research on May 11, grouping the sanctioned addresses under a Central Bank of Iran entity page that it says can be used as a starting point to trace connected wallets and transaction flows.
The firm said the wallets hold TRC-20 tokens — a token standard that runs on the Tron network and includes USDT, the world’s largest stablecoin.
A Layered System Built To HideThe money trail is not simple. According to Chainalysis, Iranian oil revenues passed through brokers, intermediary wallets, cross-chain bridges, and decentralized finance protocols before ending up in accounts linked to Iran’s central bank and IRGC-connected entities. The pipeline was built for concealment, layered step by step to obscure its origins.
A TRON spokesperson said the network itself cannot monitor or block individual transactions, but pointed to the T3 Financial Crime Unit — a joint effort between TRON, Tether, and TRM Labs launched in 2024 — as its main tool for flagging abuse.
The unit works with law enforcement to freeze hundreds of millions in funds tied to sanctioned groups and terrorism financing, the spokesperson said. Tether declined to comment separately.
Iran’s Crypto Activity Runs DeepMeanwhile, Iran is said to be looking into charging crypto-denominated tolls to ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz — a sign that digital assets are being considered as a revenue channel well beyond sanctions evasion.
Featured image from Bitcoin Policy Institute, chart from TradingView
