When a country begins to accept cryptocurrency for weapon orders, cryptographic assets are no longer a matter of "financial innovation" or "gray tools," but are officially incorporated into the national survival and foreign strategic competition system.
In January 2026, Iran's Ministry of Defense Export Center Mindex explicitly stated in official documents that its overseas military contracts could accept cryptocurrency, barter trade, or Iranian rials as payment methods.
The arms trade has always been one of the most sanctioned, regulated, and sensitive cross-border transaction scenarios. Iran's choice to publicly include cryptocurrency as a payment option in this field signifies one thing: cryptographic assets are being systematically used by Iran as "anti-sanction financial tools."
Driven by Real Constraints
In recent years, Iran has been under three highly realistic constraints:
- The long-term depreciation of the national currency, the rial, and a fragile foreign exchange system
- The international banking system has essentially been cut off
- Energy exports and military trade continue to face settlement and delivery risks
Against this backdrop, in 2025, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf publicly stated that without accepting cryptocurrency, Iran would be unable to achieve its national goal of having the digital economy account for 10% of GDP, and called for the rapid formulation of a national roadmap for cryptographic assets.
This is not technological idealism; it is a sober judgment formed under the long-term reality of sanctions—without the introduction of cryptocurrency, many economic goals cannot be realized.
The Fourth Largest Mining Center in the World
From the actual situation, Iran's dependence on cryptographic assets is far more aggressive than its statements suggest.
On one hand, Iran has become the fourth largest cryptocurrency mining center in the world. Thanks to substantial electricity subsidies, even with rampant illegal mining, it has brought considerable computing power and cryptographic assets.
On the other hand, cryptographic assets are also deeply embedded in more sensitive areas. The Israeli National Counter-Terrorism Financing Bureau has disclosed that addresses related to the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have cumulatively received about $1.5 billion in USDT.
Although some addresses may belong to exchanges or shared services, the scale itself is enough to indicate: stablecoins are becoming an important liquidity vehicle for Iran to bypass sanctions.
"Fireflies" in the Dark
In January 2026, due to protests and a currency crisis, Iran implemented a nationwide internet shutdown. This should have been a "fatal blow" to cryptocurrency transactions, but the result was unexpected.
In the offline environment, various offline or weakly connected solutions were quickly discussed and deployed:
- Starlink satellite network
- Blockstream satellite network supports broadcasting Bitcoin data globally
- Bluetooth mesh communication tool Bitchat
- Internet-free Bitcoin transmission solution Darkwire
- Machankura, which supports sending and receiving Bitcoin over telecom networks
These solutions are not mature and cannot replace the internet on a large scale, but in such extreme environments, the cryptocurrency industry has shown its remarkable resilience. When traditional communication and financial systems fail simultaneously, cryptographic assets will be regarded as "the last channel still worth trying."
The Era of "Strategic Tools"
Iran's experience is a microcosm of a nation's struggle for survival under extreme sanctions.
It demonstrates the unique value of cryptocurrency in geopolitics: bypassing traditional financial systems to achieve value transfer and acquire strategic materials.
Russia's oil trade, Venezuela's "shadow Bitcoin reserves," and now Iran's arms trade all point to an undeniable reality: cryptocurrency is rising from a "financial tool" to a "geopolitical tool," becoming a new medium that connects national strategies with the global economy.
*This content is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice. The market has risks, and investment should be cautious.
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