The Iranian government's move to accept cryptocurrency payments from cargo ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz is not surprising, given its existing trade networks that evade sanctions. A spokesperson for Iran's Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union confirmed that bitcoin is being accepted as a payment method, with a fee of $1 per barrel of oil.
This development is part of a larger trend of the Iranian regime using cryptocurrency to facilitate cross-border trade, especially with oil sales, as revealed by data from blockchain analytics specialist Chainalysis. Experts like Andrew Fierman, head of national security intelligence at Chainalysis, note that this move fits perfectly with Tehran's existing sanctions-skirting trade networks. The use of cryptocurrency, particularly stablecoins, allows the Iranian regime to circumvent traditional banking systems and access US dollar-pegged assets, making it easier to trade globally.
This is in contrast to North Korea, which primarily uses cryptocurrency for stealing and laundering purposes. The Iranian regime has been comprehensively sanctioned since 1979, and its inability to access US dollar-pegged assets has made it challenging to trade internationally. However, the use of stablecoins has created a mechanism for the regime to trade globally with anyone willing to trade with them, without relying on traditional banking systems.
Experts like Tom Keatinge, founding director of the Centre for Finance and Security, and Lee Reiners, a lecturing fellow at Duke University's Financial Economics Center, agree that USD-backed stablecoins have become an increasingly important payment mechanism for the Iranian regime, allowing it to avoid sanctions and western banking controls.