The Central Bank of Iran has purchased at least $507 million USDT since the beginning of 2025, using the stablecoin as a tool to stabilize the exchange rate and circumvent international sanctions.
With the Iranian rial losing nearly half its value in eight months and hitting a historic Dip against the US dollar, the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has turned to leveraging digital assets as an alternative to traditional foreign exchange reserves. According to newly published research by blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, Tehran's monetary authority has accumulated at least $507 million worth of USDT – a stablecoin Peg to the US dollar – through a network of verified cryptocurrency wallets directly linked to the bank.
The first large-scale USDT purchases were recorded in April and May 2025, with payments made in UAE dirham. By early June, the majority of these stablecoins had been transferred to Nobitex, a leading cryptocurrency exchange in Iran, where USDT could be swapped for rial or used for other purposes.
Experts see this move as an attempt by the Tehran government to inject USD liquidation into the domestic market and curb the decline of the national currency amid severely limited access to the global financial system.
Building a "sanctions-resistant" financial infrastructure.
Elliptic's analysis suggests that Iran is gradually establishing a parallel financial ecosystem in which USDT Vai as a digital USD account outside the control of the international banking system. This model allows Tehran to conduct cross-border trade payments and repatriate export revenues without facing the risk of asset freezes as with traditional channels.
Analysts suggest that the CBI may have implemented currency intervention measures by using USDT to purchase rial in the domestic market, thereby supporting exchange rate stability.
However, the public and transparent nature of blockchain technology also makes these activities easily traceable and trackable. On June 15, 2025, Tether – the issuer of USDT – froze several wallets related to CBI, resulting in approximately 37 million USDT being blocked. This incident demonstrates that even digital assets are not entirely immune to international sanctions, as issuers of stablecoins can still interfere with specific transactions.
A crucial turning point occurred after June 18th, when Nobitex became the target of a cyberattack resulting in the loss of approximately $90 million in cryptocurrency assets. Following this incident, the flow of USDT underwent significant changes with the use of chain chain bridges to transfer assets from TRON to Ethereum, then circulating through decentralized and centralized trading platforms.
Although Elliptic's research focused only on highly reliable verified wallet addresses, the actual amount of USDT held by CBI may be higher than the reported figure of $507 million. In the first seven months of 2025, the total volume in Iran reached $3.7 billion, a decrease of 11 percent compared to the same period the previous year.
