The policy shift gives businesses more flexibility to repatriate export earnings outside the central bank’s official foreign-exchange platform and use those proceeds directly to pay for imports. Crypto transactions have become one route for moving value across borders where bank transfers, dollar clearing and correspondent banking are constrained.
The change marks a further accommodation of digital assets by authorities. It also reflects Tehran’s effort to keep commercial payments functioning as Washington broadens sanctions against finance, oil, shipping, aviation and digital assets.
USDT, a dollar-pegged stablecoin issued by Tether, is useful for traders because it can transfer dollar-linked value without relying on a conventional bank. Bitcoin offers another settlement route, although its price volatility makes it less predictable for businesses handling invoices and working capital.
The expansion carries substantial risks. The US Treasury has stepped up action against cryptocurrency infrastructure linked to Iran and in August sanctioned exchanges and networks it accused of helping the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other sanctioned actors move funds. Washington has also made Iran’s digital-asset sector subject to broader sanctions authorities.
Those actions have shown the vulnerability of dollar-linked stablecoins to enforcement. In July, the US Treasury added four cryptocurrency addresses associated with the Central Bank of Iran to its sanctions listings. Blockchain analysis indicated the wallets had received about $165 million in stablecoins, while Tether froze balances worth roughly $131 million after the designation.
Such freezes underline a central weakness in using USDT as an alternative payment rail. Although transactions occur on public blockchains rather than through banks, the token is centrally issued and its operator can block addresses. Bitcoin, by contrast, has no issuer able to freeze funds, but transactions remain traceable and exchanges can be targeted by regulators.
Iran’s crypto economy was already substantial before the easing. Blockchain analytics group Chainalysis estimated cryptocurrency activity connected to Iran exceeded $7.78 billion in 2025. It said addresses associated with the Revolutionary Guard and its networks accounted for more than half of value received in the final quarter, while also cautioning that crypto use by ordinary citizens rises during periods of currency stress and geopolitical tension.
That distinction matters because digital assets serve different purposes inside Iran. State-linked entities and sanctioned networks can use them to move funds outside traditional financial channels, while households and private businesses may use crypto to preserve savings, obtain hard-currency exposure or settle legitimate trade when access to international banking is limited.
The central bank’s looser approach also addresses a persistent problem over export earnings. Iranian authorities have said more than 20,000 exporters failed to return about €94 billion in foreign-currency proceeds required to be repatriated. Allowing exporters to use overseas earnings more directly for imports could reduce incentives to keep funds outside the country, while giving officials fewer opportunities to control the exchange rate at which those earnings are converted.
Tehran is nevertheless maintaining scrutiny of undeclared export proceeds and has not abandoned broader currency controls. The change is therefore better understood as a pragmatic relaxation of settlement rules rather than unrestricted cryptocurrency liberalisation.
US pressure is moving in the opposite direction. The Treasury has designated several Iran-linked exchanges, targeted networks accused of using digital assets for oil payments and sanctions evasion, and warned foreign financial institutions and service providers about exposure to secondary sanctions. The measures are intended to make alternative payment channels harder to use at scale.
Crypto cannot fully substitute for access to the global banking system. Large importers still need dependable liquidity, counterparties willing to accept digital assets and ways to convert tokens into local currency or goods without triggering compliance controls. Stablecoins can reduce transfer friction, but sanctions screening, wallet blacklisting and exchange restrictions can interrupt transactions at multiple points.
Arabian Post – Crypto News Network
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