Free Republic

The decentralized nature of cryptocurrency makes it an ideal vehicle for sanctions evasion and an increasingly vital pillar of Iran’s wartime economy. As the risk of renewed U.S.-Iran conflict rises, Tehran has moved quickly to adapt to wartime realities while attempting to limit the impact on border security, domestic stability, and the broader economy. Despite obvious constraints, the Islamic Republic has had a measure of success in maintaining control at home while circumventing U.S. pressure in the Strait of Hormuz through shadow tankers and ship-to-ship transfers to sustain oil exports. This has reignited Western debates over whether sanctions and military...

Iran-based cryptocurrency exchange Nobitex has reportedly suffered a major security breach, resulting in the theft of over $81 million in digital assets by a hacker group claiming ties to Israel. CoinTelegraph reports that the Iranian cryptocurrency exchange Nobitex has fallen victim to a devastating hack, resulting in the loss of more than $81 million in digital assets. The attack, disclosed in a Telegram post on Wednesday, drained funds across the Tron network and Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchains. According to noted crypto investigator ZachXBT, the attackers exploited the protocol using “vanity addresses,” which led to suspicious outflows from multiple Nobitex-linked...