Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire refuted speculation that USDC could be used for crypto transit tolls at the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments. Speaking at a press conference in Seoul, Allaire emphasized the stablecoin issuer's compliance-first approach, highlighting close collaboration with law enforcement and sanctions authorities to monitor transactions.

The comments follow reports suggesting Iran's Revolutionary Guards might accept USDC for passage fees. Allaire dismissed such scenarios, pointing to Circle's "highly compliant infrastructure" designed to prevent illicit flows. The UN and blockchain analysts have previously traced sanctioned entities attempting to use cryptocurrency to circumvent oil trade restrictions.

Separately, Allaire addressed criticism over Circle's response time during a $285 million exploit of the cross-chain protocol Drift. He defended the company's freeze policy, citing legal constraints that govern stablecoin issuers' ability to intervene in decentralized finance breaches. The incident underscores the growing tension between crypto's permissionless ethos and regulatory expectations for asset-backed tokens.