Russia Crypto Seizures, Iran Hits $7.78B

• Iran’s crypto ecosystem reached $7.78 billion in 2025, driven by mining and stablecoins.
• Russia signed a law permitting court-ordered seizure of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies.
• Bank of Korea urges commercial banks to lead won stablecoin issuance under regulation.

Global crypto policy shifted as Russia approved court-ordered cryptocurrency confiscations while Iran’s digital asset ecosystem reached $7.78 billion in 2025.

Chainalysis confirmed the growth, and President Vladimir Putin signed a seizure law. Regulators in South Korea, Japan, and China also introduced new digital asset measures.

Iran Expands Crypto Operations as Russia Formalizes Seizures

Iran has built a parallel crypto economy centered on Bitcoin mining and stablecoins. According to Chainalysis, addresses linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps accounted for more than 50% of inflows. These addresses received over $3 billion during 2025. Elliptic reported that Iran’s central bank accumulated at least $507 million in USDT this year. 

The stablecoin holdings were likely used to stabilize the rial and settle trade transactions. The Iranian government mines Bitcoin at an estimated cost of $1,300 per coin and sells it at market rates.

Recent military strikes by the United States and Israel could affect Iran’s power grid. Bitcoin mining depends on steady electricity supply, and disruptions could reduce production capacity.

President Putin signed a law defining virtual currencies as “intangible assets” and permitting court-ordered seizures in criminal cases. Law enforcement may confiscate hardware wallets and transfer funds to designated safe addresses. The legislation establishes procedures for handling, storing, and controlling seized cryptocurrencies during investigations.

Stablecoin Regulation Advances in South Korea and China

The Bank of Korea renewed its call for commercial banks to lead won-pegged stablecoin issuance, calling them “currency-like substitutes.” It warned that private issuance could affect monetary policy and foreign exchange stability and bypass reporting rules. The bank recommended bank-led issuance first, with non-bank participation following risk reviews.

South Korean media reported slow progress on stablecoin regulations. Meanwhile, Tether and Circle have increased hiring efforts in the country.

The upcoming Digital Assets Basic Act is expected to require overseas issuers to establish local branches. Elsewhere, China’s Supreme People’s Court announced plans to study judicial responses to financial cases involving virtual currencies. 

The court will also work on judicial interpretations related to securities violations and company law. A report from Artemis and Stablecon showed strong growth in stablecoin flows.

B2B stablecoin payments rose more than 730% year on year in 2025. Total annual payment volume reached $390 billion, with 60% linked to B2B transactions. China ranked second globally in stablecoin inflows, receiving around $71 billion monthly.

Japan Strengthens AML and Expands Tokenization

Japan’s Financial Services Agency will support private-sector AML pilot trials from March to May 2026. The project, submitted by Hitachi, includes crypto exchanges and blockchain analytics firms.

Participants will test an information-sharing framework for suspicious wallet addresses. Japan’s largest security token platform, Progmat, plans to migrate over $2 billion in tokenized assets to an Avalanche L1 network. 

The migration includes real estate and corporate bonds. The integration is expected to finish by June 2026. In the corporate sector, DAIDO LIMITED approved a Bitcoin purchase of up to 1 billion yen.

The company said Bitcoin may help hedge inflation and yen depreciation. It described Bitcoin as having limited supply and low correlation with traditional assets.

South Korea’s National Tax Service also faced a security incident. A news photo revealed a hardware wallet recovery phrase, and about $4.8 million in tokens were later transferred. Experts said exposure of a recovery phrase means loss of wallet control. Across the region, governments are tightening oversight while digital asset adoption continues to expand.