Elliptic reported that Iran’s central bank quietly accumulated more than $500 million in dollar-backed stablecoins to bypass sanctions and support the rial.
The blockchain analysis firm said the Central Bank of Iran acquired at least $507 million in USDT through wallets linked with high confidence.
The investigation was led by Elliptic chief scientist Dr Tom Robinson, who mapped on-chain activity attributed to the central bank.
Elliptic said the funds were largely routed through Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, before being stored, traded, or sold for rials.
The activity intensified as the rial lost around half its value in eight months, suggesting stablecoins were used to inject dollar liquidity into domestic markets.
In June 2025, Elliptic observed flows shift away from Iranian exchanges after a high-profile hack of Nobitex.
Funds were moved via a cross-chain bridge from Tron to Ethereum and then cycled through decentralised and centralised exchanges.
“This functions like digital off-book eurodollars, allowing Iran to hold and move dollar value outside the traditional banking system,”
Tom Robinson said.
Elliptic said the system supports a closed-loop trade framework approved in 2022 for imports and exports settled in synthetic dollars.
The firm stressed that public blockchains still allow tracing, noting that Tether has frozen millions of USDT linked to central bank wallets.
At the time of reporting, TRON price was $0.2994.