US targets $1 billion Iran-linked crypto seizure, Bessent says 'we know where it is'

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the United States will "probably" seize $1 billion in crypto tied to Iran this week as the Trump administration carries out an economic isolation campaign against the country.

"We’re probably gonna seize a billion dollars of crypto this week," Bessent told Greta Van Susteren at Newsmax’s NPolicy Summit in Washington on Thursday. "We know where it is and we are isolating them."

It's part of what he called an "absolute isolation campaign," covering Strait of Hormuz blockades, restrictions on international flights, and closing off Iran's land routes with neighboring countries.

"We did have a maximum pressure campaign. Now we have an absolute isolation campaign, and it’s working," he said.

Earlier seizures and sanctions

The latest blitz follows months of U.S. actions against Iran-linked cryptocurrency and exchanges, though the total value of crypto seized is unclear.

In May, Bessent said the U.S. had seized about $1 billion in Iranian crypto, saying authorities "just outright grabbed the wallets." However, a Treasury release shortly after the comment cited the earlier estimate of nearly $500 million.

In July, Treasury announced wallet sanctions that resulted in $130 million being frozen. Onchain analyst Specter linked the action to four Tron addresses holding roughly $131 million in USDT that Tether blacklisted.

The U.S. has also sanctioned several Iranian crypto exchanges. Its latest, in September, targeted BitBank over allegations that it moved hundreds of millions of dollars in bitcoin (BTC) to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps between June and July.

That followed sanctions against Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin and Ramzinex in June, and Shelbit and Aban Tether in August.

Bessent's latest comments did not clarify whether the $1 billion the Treasury is targeting is additional to the previously announced seizures.