Experts from blockchain intelligence firm NOMINIS.io have revealed how Iran's regime employs cryptocurrencies to evade Western sanctions, funding proxy groups in the region. By selling oil to Russia and China for digital payments, Iran maintains economic flows despite restrictions. This network also facilitates activities like espionage, as seen in a recent Israeli indictment.
The Iranian regime faces severe economic pressures from Western sanctions, with the rial trading at 1,283,540 per US dollar as of Tuesday. However, a parallel black-market economy sustains it through illicit oil sales to buyers like Russia and China, often settled in cryptocurrencies, according to Snir Levi, CEO of NOMINIS.io.
These digital funds are laundered via intermediaries in countries such as Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar before supporting proxies in Gaza, Lebanon, and Yemen. Levi noted, “Iran is under siege, and Gaza is also under siege,” highlighting the regime's reliance on sympathetic transit points. In Gaza, cryptocurrency transactions have surged since October 7, 2023, exceeding $100 million in inflows and outflows over the past year, with most routed through the Binance exchange.
Israel's National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing has seized hundreds of Binance accounts linked to illicit activities. Binance founder Changpeng Zhao faces lawsuits from families of October 7 victims, accused of allowing over $1 billion in transfers for groups including Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), with more than $50 million post-attack. Zhao admitted to anti-money-laundering violations in 2023 and received a pardon from US President Donald Trump in October.
While sanctions strain Iran's energy sector, Dennis Citrinowicz from the Institute for National Security Studies stated they have not shifted Tehran's policies on nuclear or missile programs, serving more as a constraint than a regime-toppling tool.
NOMINIS head of content Charlotte Cobb emphasized that cryptocurrencies are traceable using blockchain data, open-source intelligence, and social media analysis. The IRGC reportedly uses Telegram via VPNs to solicit funds from Westerners and target individuals, as in the case of Fares Abu al-Hija. The 32-year-old faces charges in Haifa for spying on former defense minister Yoav Gallant, allegedly recruited in October 2025, paid through Binance, and arrested in January 2026 after photographing areas near Gallant's Amikam home.
Such methods allow low-cost outreach for espionage tasks, including hiding devices and delivering crypto access codes.
