Iranian Rial Hits Record Low as US Sanctions Target Digital Assets for First Time

Odaily News: The Iranian rial fell to a record low this week, with the open market exchange rate dropping to about 2.02 million rials per US dollar on Aug. 24, compared with about 1.53 million rials in the first quarter. During the same period, the US government launched "Operation Economic Outcast," adding more than 60 entities to the Treasury Department's blacklist and, for the first time, designating digital assets as a sanctionable area.

State-owned farms linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) control about 65% of Iran's Bitcoin mining capacity. Iranian miners have accounted for roughly 3% to 7% of global Bitcoin hashrate since 2019, with the mined Bitcoin valued at an estimated $1.35 billion to $3.15 billion at various stages.

Iran legalized Bitcoin mining in 2019, allowing licensed operators to use industrial electricity at about $0.004 per kilowatt-hour and sell mined tokens to the Central Bank of Iran. Chainalysis estimates that IRGC-linked wallets received over $3 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025; Elliptic says the Central Bank of Iran holds at least $507 million in USDT.

The US Treasury sanctioned Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex in June. Nobitex had handled more than half of Iran's digital asset inflows; in April, the Treasury seized nearly $500 million in Iran-related crypto assets. (Bitcoin.com News)