Published On 5/7/2026
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Last update: 13:20 (Mecca time)
The Wall Street Journal said that Iran, Russia, North Korea and other countries targeted by Western sanctions have doubled their use of virtual currencies to evade American pressure.
According to a report by the newspaper based on data issued by companies tracking the flow of cryptocurrencies, the three countries and other countries targeted by sanctions dealt with about $100 billion worth of cryptocurrencies in 2025 alone.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the aforementioned increase is equivalent to 8 times the volume of transactions witnessed in 2024, indicating that Iran, Russia, North Korea, and other countries targeted by sanctions have become more sophisticated in how they deal with the cryptocurrency market and create their own digital codes and cryptocurrency trading platforms to circumvent the sanctions.
The newspaper quoted Western officials and digital currency analysis companies as saying that Iran and Russia used digital currencies to purchase drones and weapons spare parts.
Russia has also used these currencies to pay the salaries of sailors who smuggle its sanctioned crude oil around the world. As for North Korea, it used digital currencies to purchase fuel and military equipment, according to the report published by the Wall Street Journal entitled: “How do rogue countries use cryptocurrencies to evade sanctions?”
The use of cryptocurrencies allows these countries to bypass traditional banks, which play a pivotal role in monitoring the sanctions imposed on them by the United States and other Western parties.
Denial and criticism
The report indicated that Western officials accuse Pyongyang of stealing digital currencies through “cybercrimes,” accusations that Pyongyang described as “ridiculous slander,” and considered these allegations an extension of Washington’s hostile policy against it.
The newspaper quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying – commenting on the above – that Russia considers the international sanctions imposed on it to be illegal under international law, noting that Moscow “has deployed and developed alternative mechanisms that allow the economy to operate normally.”
The Wall Street Journal indicated that Tehran did not respond to a request to comment on the matter.
American action and sanctions
According to the newspaper’s report, Western authorities are striving to keep pace with the situation with the increasing popularity of digital currencies in evading sanctions. Although the United States temporarily suspended sanctions imposed on Iranian oil in conjunction with its negotiation of a potential peace agreement with Tehran, it still considers sanctions a key tool to pressure adversaries around the world.
Washington maintains the option of re-imposing sanctions on Iranian oil if the two parties do not reach a peace agreement that puts an end to the conflict between them.
Last June, Washington imposed sanctions on four Iranian platforms for trading cryptocurrencies, including the “Nobitex” platform, which is the largest trading platform in the country.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Besent said that the United States confiscated $1 billion in Iranian cryptocurrencies. Nobitex and another sanctioned platform, BitPen, denied facilitating any illegal activities and said their clients were private individuals, while the other two platforms did not respond to requests for comment.
In the United Kingdom, last May, authorities blacklisted one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency trading platforms on suspicion of supporting the Russian government. The platform, HTX, said it would work with authorities to address any concerns.
Imposing firm control on this market is almost impossible, because a large part of this sector is unregulated, and transactions take place without revealing the identity of their owners, which makes tracking them complicated.
