The Iranian regime's decision to accept cryptocurrency payments from cargo ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz is a logical progression of its existing trade networks designed to circumvent sanctions. According to a spokesperson for Iran's Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union, bitcoin is now an accepted payment method, following reports that stablecoins were being used to allow select oil tankers to pass unharmed, with a fee of $1 per barrel of oil. This formalization of crypto-based toll payments aligns with the regime's increasing use of cryptocurrency for cross-border trade, particularly in oil sales, as documented by blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis. Experts like Andrew Fierman, head of national security intelligence at Chainalysis, find this development unsurprising given the regime's history of leveraging cryptocurrency to facilitate international trade, especially in light of U.S.
sanctions. The use of crypto wallets by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated networks for oil sales and other transactions underscores the complexity and scale of these operations. For instance, a U.S.-sanctioned IRGC-affiliated financier was involved in Iranian oil sales to Yemen, using cryptocurrency addresses, resulting in over $178 million in transfers within a year. Furthermore, the Houthis, an Iran-backed group, have considered imposing a second chokepoint on global oil and gas shipping at the Bab-al-Mandeb channel, highlighting the strategic importance of these waterways.
The IRGC's adoption of cryptocurrency, especially stablecoins, for cross-border trade is seen as a practical solution to the challenges posed by comprehensive sanctions, which have limited Iran's access to U.S. dollar-pegged assets and the traditional banking system.
Experts like Tom Keatinge and Lee Reiners agree that USD-backed stablecoins offer the Iranian regime a viable mechanism for international trade that sidesteps Western regulatory controls, with Reiners suggesting that demanding payment in specific stablecoins could further the regime's goals.