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BTC Iran turns to Bitcoin and USDT for trade settlement in response to tightening U.S. sanctions
Iranian companies are increasingly using Bitcoin and USDT to settle cross-border trade as Iran relaxes foreign exchange controls and seeks alternative payment channels outside the global banking system. According to Iranian companies, regime insiders and industry participants interviewed by the Financial Times, the Central Bank of Iran has acquiesced in exporters receiving cryptocurrency payments and settling transactions through domestic crypto exchanges. However, the central bank of Iran did not publicly formally confirm the policy change or comment on it.
Exporters gain more flexibility in cryptocurrency settlement
Previously, Iran required exporters to repatriate most of their foreign currency income and sell it at the official exchange rate through government-controlled channels. This relaxed approach allows companies to use export earnings more directly for imports and gives some companies greater freedom in how overseas earnings are returned to Iran.
USDT provides a dollar-denominated settlement asset that can be used without direct access to U.S. banks, while Bitcoin provides another path for transferring value across borders. Although domestic exchanges form part of this infrastructure, their use carries a huge risk of sanctions outside Iran.
The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) views Iran's digital asset exchanges as "blocked Iranian financial institutions." On August 24, the United States further expanded this pressure and officially added Iran's digital asset sector to the list of industries that could trigger sanctions under Executive Order 13902.
Iran's cryptocurrency transaction volume reached US$9.9 billion in 2025
In 2025, Iran recorded approximately US$9.9 billion in attributed cryptocurrency transactions. Among them, the four major domestic exchanges, Nobitex, Bit Pin, Wallex and Ramzinex accounted for approximately US$7.7 billion, accounting for 78%.
Washington designated Nobitex and three other Iranian exchanges in June, and subsequently imposed sanctions on additional crypto platforms in August. The flow of cryptocurrency between Iranian platforms and offshore locations has sparked compliance disputes, including more than $3.84 billion in Iranian-related capital flows involving CoinEx, which have lasted for several years.
USDT plays a particularly important role in this. Earlier this year, Tether carried out a $344 million freeze in coordination with OFAC and U.S. law enforcement agencies, and the associated wallet was later attributed to the Central Bank of Iran.
Tether's control limits USDT's ability to circumvent sanctions
While USDT can circulate globally on public blockchains, Tether retains the ability to blacklist individual addresses and freeze their tokens. As of April 2026, Tether has frozen more than $4.4 billion in assets linked to illicit activities by working with more than 340 law enforcement agencies.
This large-scale control is still active. This week, Tether froze another $39.3 million, spread across 10 Tron wallets linked to the sanctioned Telegram market Xinbi Guarantee through MistTrack technology.
As a result, Iran's expanding use of cryptocurrencies has directly hit the increasingly tightening U.S. law enforcement line. OFAC's decision on August 24 now explicitly includes Iran's digital assets arm, giving Washington the power to target people operating in the space, a trend that has become increasingly evident as Tehran increases its use of Bitcoin, USDT and domestic exchanges for cross-border settlements.
