Iran Purchases Over $500 Million in USDT, Possibly to Back Its Currency and Settle Trade: Elliptic This article is provided by RT Watson. #TrumpImposeTariffsOnEurope Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic stated on Wednesday, "Elliptic researchers have mapped the broader wallet infrastructure of the Central Bank of Iran, revealing its systematic accumulation of at least $500 million in USDT. This indicates that Iran has employed a sophisticated strategy to bypass the global banking system." #Iran Due to sanctions, Iran lacks access to the global banking system and cannot use the SWIFT messaging system for fund transfers. Elliptic suggests that the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) likely purchased these USDTs to back its domestic currency, the rial, and for settling international trade. #USDT Elliptic's report follows a Washington Post report this month, which stated that since 2023, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has transferred approximately $1 billion using two UK-registered cryptocurrency exchanges. The vast majority of transactions were settled using USDT. #MEME Elliptic stated, "The period when the Central Bank of Iran was accumulating large amounts of USDT coincided with severe economic volatility. The rial's value halved in just eight months, plummeting to a record low against the US dollar. The Central Bank of Iran may have been attempting to stem the rial's devaluation by using USDT to purchase rials on the Nobitex exchange, effectively conducting open market operations using crypto assets that would normally involve cash reserves." #Binance Nobitex is by far Iran's largest cryptocurrency exchange. According to Elliptic, Nobitex not only allows customers to store USDT but also to exchange it for other digital assets or sell it for rials. Last year, Nobitex suffered a major attack in which hackers stole up to $90 million from its hot wallets. Elliptic claims the pro-Israel group Gonjeshke Darande orchestrated the attack. $BTC {spot}(BTCUSDT) $USDT $ETH {future}(ETHUSDT)