{"id":4737,"date":"2026-07-15T22:14:43","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T22:14:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/?p=4737"},"modified":"2026-07-15T22:14:43","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T22:14:43","slug":"us-freezes-131-million-in-crypto-linked-to-iran-as-middle-east-conflict-escalates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/2026\/07\/15\/us-freezes-131-million-in-crypto-linked-to-iran-as-middle-east-conflict-escalates\/","title":{"rendered":"US Freezes $131 Million in Crypto Linked to Iran as Middle East Conflict Escalates"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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US authorities have frozen more than $130 million in cryptocurrency tied to Iran as military tensions between the two countries continue to rise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on X that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) had sanctioned several crypto wallets associated with the Central Bank of Iran, describing the move as part of a broader effort to disrupt the country\u2019s illicit financial networks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

US Targets Iran Linked Crypto Assets<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bessent said the Treasury Department remains committed to cutting off Iran\u2019s access to funds generated through illegal financial activities and vowed to continue pursuing assets connected to sanctioned entities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Separately, blockchain investigator Specter revealed that stablecoin issuer Tether froze four TRON wallets holding approximately $131 million in USDT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Specter, the majority of the funds originated from withdrawals through payment processor DC Pay and crypto exchange Bitso before the wallets were frozen. The investigator later stated that the addresses were linked to entities already sanctioned by OFAC, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Central Bank of Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Military Tensions Continue to Rise<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The latest enforcement action comes as the security situation in the Middle East continues to deteriorate following the collapse of the ceasefire between the United States and Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US military has reportedly reinstated its naval blockade of Iranian ports after previously enforcing similar measures between April and June. At the same time, American forces carried out a fourth consecutive day of strikes against Iranian targets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran also announced a new phase of its military campaign, claiming responsibility for drone strikes targeting Jordan\u2019s Al Azraq military base as part of what it called Operation Lightning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Iranian state media, the operation targeted facilities that included aircraft shelters, accommodation buildings, and military equipment storage sites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The military escalation coincided with renewed warnings from President Donald Trump, who said in a television interview that the United States could expand its campaign to include bridges and power infrastructure unless Iran returns to negotiations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pressure on Iran\u2019s Crypto Sector Intensifies<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The latest asset freeze follows a series of actions targeting Iran\u2019s cryptocurrency ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In April, Tether froze more than $344 million worth of USDT at the request of US authorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month, the US Treasury also sanctioned several Iranian cryptocurrency platforms, including Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex, as part of the Trump administration\u2019s Economic Fury campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

US officials alleged that the exchanges helped Iran circumvent international sanctions, process transactions connected to the IRGC, and facilitate the movement of funds through digital assets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Treasury Department further claimed that Nobitex handled more than half of Iran\u2019s cryptocurrency inflows during 2025 and enabled the Central Bank of Iran to access hundreds of millions of dollars in stablecoins.#crypto#cryptonews https:\/\/coinsignals.net<\/a> https:\/\/t.me\/coinsignalpublic<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

US authorities have frozen more than $130 million in cryptocurrency tied to Iran as military tensions between the two countries continue to rise. Treasury Secretary Scott...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4737","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4737","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4737"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4737\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4739,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4737\/revisions\/4739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4737"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4737"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4737"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}