$61M Crypto Proceeds Seized From Sanctioned Iranian Oil Sales

The US Department of Justice has filed a civil forfeiture complaint against approximately $61 million in cryptocurrency proceeds from black-market sales of sanctioned Iranian crude oil and petroleum products. Prosecutors allege that the sales were intended to finance the Iranian government and its military components, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.

The two Chinese companies involved, Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale, used trading accounts on Binance to launder proceeds of the black-market oil sales. They funneled the funds to the Iranian government and its proxies through various channels, including an Iranian cryptocurrency exchange.

The DOJ has identified a series of interrelated unhosted cryptocurrency addresses that have received and distributed over $1.5 billion in proceeds from the illicit sale of Iranian oil. These addresses, referred to as 'Entity A,' funneled funds to IRGC-related businesses and cryptocurrency addresses.