Millions of dollars in cryptocurrency were withdrawn from Iran’s largest Bitcoin exchange within minutes of the US-Israeli strikes, as users moved swiftly to safeguard their holdings, according to analysts.
Blockchain forensics group Elliptic reported a 700% surge in outflows from Nobitex, the country’s leading crypto platform. Approximately $7m (£5.2m) was transferred out on Saturday, including $2.9m in the first hour after the initial attacks — a sharp jump from the previous day’s hourly peak of $358,000.
Digital currencies have long been viewed as a channel through which Iran can mitigate the impact of sanctions that restrict access to international financial systems.
Although Nobitex has reportedly been linked to individuals close to the regime, it also serves a broad user base of around 11 million customers, indicating widespread use among the general population.
It remains unclear who initiated the recent transfers. Elliptic noted that some transactions continued even after the platform went offline over the weekend, suggesting that parties with direct system access may have facilitated further fund movements.
