US plans to seize $1B in crypto linked to Iran this week: Scott Bessent

The Treasury Department has announced several digital asset seizures related to sanctions on Iran as part of US sanctions.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the country was “probably gonna seize a billion dollars of crypto this week” as part of its crackdowns on Iran.

Speaking at the Newsmax NPolicy Summit on Thursday, Bessent said the planned cryptocurrency seizure was part of the US sanctions on Iran amid the country’s most recent military conflict, which started in February. He did not clarify whether the digital assets targeted specific exchanges or resulted from intervention by stablecoin issuers.

“We know where it is, and we are isolating them,” said Bessent to Newsmax’s Greta Van Susteren. He added the move was part of a strategy of economically cutting off Iran.

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