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US Treasury Secretary reports seizure of Iranian crypto wallets worth $1 billion
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that American authorities had seized around $1 billion in crypto assets linked to Iran — twice the amount announced at the end of April.
Speaking at the Reagan National Economic Forum, Bessent described the mechanics of the seizures briefly: “We simply seized the wallets. Some of their owners may be entering their password right now and may not yet have realized that their wallet has been taken.” The Treasury chief did not specify exactly how this was done — such restraint is standard in operations of this kind. Technically, breaking the cryptography of a wallet is practically impossible, so this most likely involved de-anonymizing owners through blockchain analysis, obtaining keys through the arrest of intermediaries, or cooperation with exchanges that transferred assets at the request of the authorities.
According to him, the operations are being carried out as part of Operation Economic Fury — a financial pressure campaign against Tehran launched in March 2025.
Operation on several fronts
Operation Economic Fury covers several areas at once: the seizure of crypto assets, the freezing of bank accounts, and the confiscation of property together with European allies. Bessent described the results as highly significant: “Between five and a half and six weeks of an incredibly successful military campaign and Operation Economic Fury, we have really cut them off. Financially, they are now at the limit.”
The new figure of $1 billion is significantly higher than previously disclosed data. At the end of April, the Treasury Department reported the seizure of $500 million in Iranian crypto assets, while an earlier figure of $344 million had been mentioned.
Iran’s economic situation
According to Bessent, before US intervention, the Iranian regime distributed between $400 million and $500 million each month among roughly 80 senior officials. The situation has now changed dramatically: inflation, by his estimate, has exceeded 200%, the government is handing out food vouchers, the internet is shut down, and 40% to 50% of military personnel are not receiving salaries. The Treasury chief also mentioned the difficulty of negotiations with Iran amid the fragmentation of the country’s leadership following US and Israeli strikes against several senior regime figures.
Bitcoin as Tehran’s instrument
At the same time, Iran is considering monetizing its control over the Strait of Hormuz through a Bitcoin-based insurance scheme. Fars News Agency — a publication close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — published a state document describing the Hormuz Safe platform. It would allow the sale of digital insurance for maritime vessels with payments in Bitcoin and settlements on the blockchain, potentially generating more than $10 billion in revenue for the country.
Back in early April, a representative of Iran’s Union of Oil Products Exporters said that certain vessels would be allowed to pass through the strait if they paid a tariff of $1 per barrel of oil in Bitcoin.
Thus, the volume of crypto assets seized from Iran has grown from $344 million to $1 billion within several weeks — and, judging by Bessent’s statements, the operation is continuing. Against this backdrop, Tehran, in turn, is working on its own cryptocurrency schemes to offset financial pressure.
AI Opinion
The situation demonstrates a fundamental contradiction that the article leaves aside. OFAC’s authority is based on domestic US law — primarily IEEPA, meaning a national emergency order issued by the president, rather than a ruling by an international court or a UN mandate. From the standpoint of international law, this means that the United States is acting under a regime of extraterritorial sanctions — a tool that the European Union, China, and several other jurisdictions formally challenge as incompatible with the sovereign equality of states. There is no international court ruling on the seizure of Iranian crypto assets — and, apparently, none was planned.
The paradox is that Bitcoin was positioned as an asset outside the jurisdiction of any state, yet in practice it proved vulnerable precisely where it intersects with traditional infrastructure: exchanges, custodians, and IP addresses. Iran’s schemes involving the Strait of Hormuz are an attempt to move beyond this vulnerability. The question remains open: is such a seizure a precedent in financial law, or simply a demonstration of power with no legal basis outside US jurisdiction?
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