IRGC uses USDT on Tron to fund Hormuz toll operations beyond U.S. financial reach

USDT, the dollar-pegged stablecoin, has become central to a documented financial operation linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The token settles transactions on the Tron blockchain in under three seconds, according to the report described in the article.

The arrangement is reported to bypass American banking infrastructure and, as described, cannot be frozen by the Federal Reserve. Bloomberg reported on April 1 that the IRGC collects tolls from tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz, with payments accepted in Chinese yuan or stablecoins, including USDT.

How the IRGC toll collection works

Bloomberg reported that tanker operators contact an IRGC-linked intermediary to begin the process. The operator submits vessel ownership, flag, cargo, and crew list, along with the destination for review.

Hormozgan Provincial Command screens submissions using a one-to-five friendliness ranking toward the U.S. and Israel. If cleared, the operator negotiates a toll starting at one dollar per barrel.

Rates can reach up to two million dollars per supertanker, depending on the agreement reached. Payment is reported to settle either in Chinese yuan through CIPS or in USDT through the Tron blockchain.

After payment is confirmed, a VHF passcode is issued to the vessel. An IRGC patrol boat then escorts the tanker through the Larak corridor.

Crypto rails and reported scale of IRGC activity

Analyst Shanaka Anslem Perera posted on X that the toll system was “live and collecting revenue tonight.” He described the setup as a situation where an enemy’s currency funds both sides.

The article also cites blockchain analytics firms documenting broader IRGC crypto flows. Chainalysis reported that the IRGC moved $3 billion through cryptocurrency in 2025 alone, and that IRGC-linked wallet addresses accounted for over 50 percent of all Iranian crypto activity by Q4 2025.

TRM Labs traced approximately $1 billion in IRGC flows through two UK-registered exchanges, Zedcex and Zedxion. TRM said the exchanges conducted transactions almost entirely in USDT on Tron, describing the operation as “a sanctioned military organization operating exchange-branded crypto infrastructure offshore” and further characterizing it as “infrastructure-level control” over offshore stablecoin exchange activity.

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control designated both exchanges on January 30, 2026. The article states that twenty-nine days after those designations, military strikes on Iran began.

Broader context and reported reserves

The article says that in January 2026, Iran’s Ministry of Defence began accepting cryptocurrency for arms exports, including drones, missiles, and defense equipment, settled on the same blockchain rails.

It also cites Elliptic, stating that the Central Bank of Iran had accumulated $507 million in USDT, and that the reserve was already in place before the current conflict escalated further.

Impact: dollar-denominated payments on separate systems

The article contrasts two dollar-linked systems operating on different rails. It states that U.S. Treasury bonds are used to fund the U.S. war effort, including aircraft carriers, interceptors, and 2,400 sorties flown over Iran in five weeks.

At the same time, the article says USDT—bearing “USD” on its face—has been used to fund toll payments on the opposing side. It describes both instruments as denominated in dollars while operating on separate financial infrastructure, with one rail running through the Federal Reserve and the other through a British Virgin Islands-registered blockchain.

According to the article, the IRGC captures revenue from dollar-denominated tolls without needing access to American financial systems, and neither party controls how the other side uses the dollar’s name in the conflict.