According to OFAC, Nobitex processed more than 50% of Iran’s digital asset inflows in 2025 and allegedly facilitated transactions linked to sanctions evasion, terrorist financing, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The sanctions also extend to several Nobitex executives and co-founders. Nobitex Hit With US Sanctions The United States Treasury Department intensified its pressure on Iran’s financial networks by imposing sanctions on Nobitex, the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, along with three other Iran-based digital asset trading platforms. The sanctions form part of the Trump administration’s “Economic Fury” campaign, which aims to disrupt financial channels that Washington believes are being used to support sanctioned entities and activities linked to the Iranian government. According to the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Nobitex played a dominant role in Iran’s crypto market, and processed more than half of all Iranian digital asset inflows during 2025. US authorities allege that the exchange facilitated sanctions evasion, terrorist financing, and transactions connected to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an organization that is still heavily sanctioned by the United States. The sanctions also target several people associated with Nobitex. Among those designated are chairman and co-founder Amir Hossein Rad, current CEO Seyed Ali Khoee, and co-founders Ali and Mohammad Kharrazi. The Kharrazi brothers are members of one of Iran’s most influential political families. A recent Reuters investigation reported that they are related to Iran’s supreme leadership and alleged that hundreds of millions of dollars tied to sanctioned Iranian entities moved through the exchange. Ali and Mohammad Kharrazi Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that despite Iran’s worsening economic conditions, the government embraced digital asset technologies as a tool to bypass international restrictions and move wealth beyond the reach of sanctions. He argued that cryptocurrencies have become an important component of Tehran’s efforts to maintain access to global financial networks despite mounting economic pressure. In addition to Nobitex, the Treasury Department sanctioned three other Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges: Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex. US officials claim these platforms also facilitated transactions involving the IRGC and other sanctioned organizations. The move is a big escalation in Washington’s efforts to target Iran’s cryptocurrency sector. Nobitex has long served as a cornerstone of Iran’s digital asset ecosystem and previously avoided direct Western sanctions despite growing scrutiny from lawmakers and blockchain analytics firms.
