- Reuters discovered that Nobitex processed millions for Iran’s central bank, IRGC.
- The Treasury sanctioned the founders and CEO of Nobitex for helping named entities.
- The company denies having direct ties to the government or deliberately facilitating illicit transactions.
The United States announced sanctions on Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange on Tuesday, accusing it of allowing the Iranian government and blacklisted state institutions to evade Western sanctions.
The new sanctions follow a Reuters research published on May 1, which showed how Nobitex had become a central node in a parallel financial system used to process hundreds of millions of dollars for Iran’s central bank and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The report also revealed how Nobitex continued to operate even after the government-imposed internet shutdown, processing millions of dollars in transactions.
“While Iran’s economy is in free fall, the regime has chosen to co-opt digital asset technologies for its own corrupt agenda, including sanctions evasion and wealth transfer out of the country,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
He Reuters The investigation showed how Nobitex is controlled by two brothers from one of Iran’s most powerful families, with close ties to the new supreme leader.
The two are members of the Kharrazi family, one of the most influential dynasties in the Islamic Republic.
Corporate records show that when the exchange began, the brothers were listed under a surname rarely used by family members.
The US Treasury announced on Tuesday that the two brothers, Seyed Mohammad Ali Aghamir Mohammad Ali and Seyed Mohammad Aghamir Mohammad Ali, had also been individually sanctioned, along with the exchange’s chief executive, Amir Hossein Rad.
Nobitex had provided “significant support” to the Iranian government and facilitated a “significant number” of digital transactions linked to the IRGC and Iran’s central bank, the US Treasury said in the statement.
“Following the beginning of US combat operations in Iran, Nobitex played a role in protecting and moving assets and funds out of Iran to protect the regime’s wealth despite internet blackouts.”
Nobitex could not be reached for comment on the sanctions, which were announced after normal business hours in Iran.
In a statement emailed to Reuters in April, Nobitex said it had no direct connections to the government and denied helping the state.
He said any illicit funds moved through Nobitex did so without management approval or knowledge.
The company also said that the two brothers had never used an alternate identity or changed their identity.
