U.S. Sanctions Iran-Linked Crypto Wallets as Tether Freezes $344 Million USDT

Gate News message, April 26 — U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Friday that the federal government is sanctioning multiple wallets linked to Iran as part of efforts to increase economic pressure on the country amid an ongoing ceasefire. The move came a day after Tether froze $344 million in USDT on Thursday in coordination with the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and U.S. law enforcement.

“We will follow the money that Tehran is desperately attempting to move outside of the country and target all financial lifelines tied to the regime,” Bessent said in a statement. The two frozen TRON addresses held approximately $213 million and $131 million in USDT respectively, with assets blacklisted at the smart contract level. According to Chainalysis, the wallets had been regularly active years prior.

Chainalysis estimates Iran’s total crypto holdings reached $7.8 billion in 2025, with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) accounting for roughly half of those holdings. The IRGC has become accustomed to making large transfers totaling several million dollars between private wallets. Earlier this month, Iran was reported to be accepting bitcoin as payment for transit fees on oil tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, known as a bitcoin mining hub, has long turned to cryptocurrencies to circumvent economic sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies.