Some Iranian crypto wallet owners may not even know yet that their money is gone. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent disclosed Friday that the US has quietly seized roughly $1 billion in digital assets tied to Iran, a figure that has nearly tripled from earlier estimates released just weeks ago.
Operation Economic Fury
The seizures are part of a campaign called Operation Economic Fury, launched in March 2025, which has gone after Iranian assets on multiple fronts — freezing bank accounts, confiscating properties with European allies, and targeting cryptocurrency holdings.
Bessent spoke about the effort at the Reagan National Economic Forum, describing the operation as part of a broader effort to cut off Iran financially.
The $1 billion disclosure is roughly double the $500 million the Treasury Department announced in late April, and far above the $344 million figure that was made public earlier that same month. The numbers have been climbing fast.
A Regime Under Pressure
Iran’s financial situation, according to Bessent, has grown increasingly dire. He said inflation inside the country has likely surpassed 200%, food vouchers are being handed out, the internet has been shut down, and between 40 and 50% of Iranian troops are not receiving their pay.
U.S. announces it has seized $1 billion in Iranian cryptocurrency assets
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday that U.S. authorities have seized approximately $1 billion in Iranian digital assets as part of sanctions enforcement against Tehran. 
The figure…
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) May 29, 2026
Before the US stepped in, Bessent said the regime had been drawing $400 to $500 million a month and splitting it among roughly 80 leaders. That flow of money has since been disrupted, he said.
The treasury secretary also touched on ongoing negotiations with Iran, saying the talks are complicated by a fractured leadership structure following strikes by the US and Israel on senior regime figures. The military campaign has been running for five and a half to six weeks, he said.
Iran’s Bitcoin Gambit
Even as its assets are being seized abroad, Iran has been exploring ways to use cryptocurrency to generate new income. Reports say the country has been weighing a platform called Hormuz Safe, which would sell digital marine insurance paid in Bitcoin to ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
According to a state document cited by Fars News Agency, an outlet affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the scheme could bring in over $10 billion.
Whether that plan gains traction remains unclear. What is clear is that Iran is losing ground fast — its cash pipelines cut, its digital wallets emptied, and its leadership scrambling to find new ways to keep money flowing in.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
