Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealed on Friday at the 2026 Reagan National Economic Forum that the United States has seized approximately $1 billion in cryptocurrency from entities linked to Iran, nearly double the government’s previous public estimate of $500 million in April. Speaking to Fox Business, Bessent said, “I believe that we have seized about a billion dollars of their crypto. Just outright grabbed the wallets. Some of them may be typing in right now and might not realize that their wallet has been grabbed.”
The escalation underscores a broadening enforcement campaign as Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) increasingly turns to digital assets for sanctions evasion. State-affiliated Iranian news reported this month that the IRGC has promoted a Bitcoin-settled maritime insurance platform called Hormuz Safe. In April, the Financial Times quoted an Iranian official saying oil tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz would be required to pay transit fees in Bitcoin, which “can’t be traced or confiscated due to sanctions.” Scammers posing as Iranian authorities have also targeted shipping companies with fraudulent payment demands in Bitcoin and Tether’s USDT stablecoin, according to Reuters. Last year, Israel’s counter-terror financing bureau alleged that the IRGC had received $1.5 billion in USDT.
Bessent framed the seizures as part of a broader financial isolation campaign. “This is money that's been stolen from the Iranian people,” he said, adding that Iran had been stealing $400–$500 million a month through sanctions evasion. The sharp increase in confiscated crypto reflects both expanded enforcement and likely underreporting in earlier figures. The action also ties directly to U.S. digital asset reserve policy. Bessent confirmed that seized bitcoin is added to the government’s strategic digital asset reserve, which now holds about 328,372 BTC worth over $24 billion, making the U.S. the largest known state holder of bitcoin.
The seizures highlight crypto’s dual role in sanctions enforcement: while digital assets can bypass traditional banking channels, blockchain analytics also enable tracing and forfeiture. For the market, the move signals heightened compliance pressure on exchanges, custodians, and counterparties exposed to cross-border flows, likely intensifying wallet screening and jurisdictional risk controls.
