Iran crypto transactions fall 11% following Nobitex hack

Crypto flows into Iran shrank to $3.7 billion in the first seven months of 2025, an 11% drop compared with 2024 levels. The decline particularly accelerated post-April, with June seeing a 50% contraction compared with last year and July slumping by 76%.

The losses coincided with the collapse of nuclear talks, a brief but intense 12-day conflict with Israel in mid-June, a time when Israeli attacks and regime-initiated disruptions contributed to extensive electricity cuts across Iran. Adding to the pressure, trust in Iran-based VASPs eroded following the June 18 breach of Nobitex. As earlier reported by Cryptopolitan, the exchange platform lost about $90 million in the attack. Around the same time, Tether also froze a record number of Iran-linked wallets, stripping the market of liquidity and stalling settlement channels.

Iran’s Nobitex suffered a $900 million attack in June

According to TRM Labs’ analysis, the June 2025 flare-up between Iran and Israel stirred a wave of withdrawals, starting with Iran’s largest exchange. Outflows from Nobitex spiked over 150% in the week leading to the conflict, as investors braced for escalation following a surge in hostilities. Much of the funds were shifted to overseas exchanges, payment providers with limited KYC thresholds, and high-risk operators lacking KYC controls.

Moreover, during the conflict, on June 18, Predatory Sparrow, an Israel-linked hacking outfit, attacked the exchange, stealing $90 million. Beyond the stolen funds, the leaked source code exposed Nobitex’s role in advancing state surveillance while shielding VIP clients and the platform’s user protections and cybersecurity gaps. 

In the aftermath, Iran introduced overnight trading restrictions, seemingly to rein in crypto activity. The hack also triggered a dramatic contraction in activity, with inbound transactions to Nobitex shrinking 70% year-on-year, amid mounting user distrust of Iranian platforms. Previously inactive Bitcoin mining–linked wallets also started transferring funds, which were later pooled into Nobitex’s new hot wallet.

Analysts believe the attack on the exchange was politically motivated, especially since the platform has been linked to regime-aligned operations. Additionally, Predatory Sparrow moved the stolen funds to vanity addresses, explicitly referencing the IRGC and hinting at political intent. 

Tether froze several Iranian entities

In July, Tether also executed its largest freeze to date of Iran-linked funds, blocking 42 crypto addresses, over half of which were heavily tied to Nobitex. Several wallets had histories of transfers involving Nobitex and IRGC-affiliated addresses, which the Israeli counter-terror finance authority had flagged. However, aside from their ties to sanctioned entities, the ultimate ownership of these addresses has not been verified.

The freeze, nonetheless, caused Iranian exchanges, influencers, and regime-backed channels to launch a push for users to exit TRON-based USDT holdings and migrate funds into DAI on Polygon. Proponents suggested switching to a faster and more affordable network would ensure Iranians and domestic exchanges retained stablecoin liquidity in the face of mounting sanctions.

This August, Iran officially passed new legislation, the Law on Taxation of Speculation and Profiteering, which, for the first time, will impose capital gains tax on cryptocurrency. Although enforcement will come in stages, the government is leaning towards increasing regulation for assets: crypto, gold, real estate, and forex.

In related news, Tether recently froze $27M of USDT associated with the sanctioned Russian crypto exchange Garantex. Garantex suspended trading and withdrawal operations as a result.

The US had previously blacklisted Garantex in April 2022 under the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Most of Garantex’s activities centered on Federation Tower and Saint Petersburg, Russia, according to OFAC, locations previously associated with other sanctioned digital asset platforms.

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