US freezes US$344 million in Iran-linked crypto assets

The United States has frozen US$344 million in cryptocurrency assets over ties to Iran, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday (Apr 24), as Washington seeks to raise pressure on Tehran amid energy supply disruptions due to war in the Middle East.

The Treasury Department “will continue to systematically degrade Tehran’s ability to generate, move, and repatriate funds”, Bessent vowed in a statement on X.

He added that his agency was imposing sanctions on “multiple wallets tied to Iran”, resulting in the freeze of funds.

The move comes as US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are headed on Saturday to Pakistan for a new round of talks with Iran on ending the conflict, with global energy markets ensnarled by the closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz.

Bessent also said that a renewal of the one-time waiver for Iranian oil at sea is totally off the table.

“Not the Iranians,” he told The Associated Press. “We have the blockade, and there’s no oil coming out.”

“And we think in the next two, three days, they’re going to have to start shuttering production, which will be very bad for their wells.”

The war started after US-Israeli strikes targeted Iran on Feb 28, in which senior figures including supreme leader Ali Khamenei were killed.

A US official said on condition of anonymity that Washington is targeting both typical sanctions evasion means like front companies, alongside newer technologies like digital assets.

The official added that Treasury is in active dialogue with financial institutions including digital assets exchanges.

-- Agencies