Blockchain Analysis Finds $3.84 Billion in Flows Between CoinEx and Iran-Linked Platforms

The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Iran-linked entities moved more than $3.84 billion through cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx, citing a new blockchain-tracing analysis by TRM Labs that is likely to intensify sanctions-compliance scrutiny of the exchange. The $3.84 billion figure is TRM’s private-sector estimate based on on-chain activity, not a U.S. government finding or a court ruling.

The report lands as Washington is already tightening pressure on Iran’s crypto network. On June 2, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, sanctioned four Iranian exchanges — Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin and Ramzinex — under Executive Orders 13224 and 13902, citing their roles in Iran’s crypto ecosystem and links to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. OFAC also warned that counterparties dealing with those exchanges could face sanctions exposure.

TRM, in a report published June 24, said it had “traced over USD 3.84 billion in blockchain-verified flows between CoinEx and sanctioned Iranian entities” over more than seven years. CoinEx is a global crypto exchange founded in 2017 and associated with mining pool ViaBTC. Nobitex, which OFAC sanctioned this month, is widely described as Iran’s largest domestic crypto exchange.

The biggest share of the activity identified by TRM involved Nobitex. The firm said about $2.7 billion in flows moved between CoinEx and Nobitex, a corridor that averaged roughly $1 million a day since 2018. That finding places CoinEx at the center of a channel that U.S. authorities are now treating as part of Iran sanctions enforcement.

TRM also described other alleged links in CoinEx’s network. It said roughly $67 million in funds it attributes to the Central Bank of Iran flowed into CoinEx-linked addresses between June 2025 and June 2026 as part of what it called structured, multichain laundering activity. Separately, TRM said it found direct on-chain interactions between CoinEx-linked addresses and wallets it linked to the IRGC, including about $5.86 million sent to IRGC-linked wallets. Those attributions come from TRM’s analysis.

The firm reported additional exposure in CoinEx’s broader corporate ecosystem, saying about $154 million flowed from ViaBTC, CoinEx’s affiliated mining pool, into Nobitex-linked wallets.

Treasury’s June 2 action raised the stakes for any offshore exchange shown to have handled substantial traffic with the sanctioned Iranian platforms. In announcing the designations, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. would “continue to follow the money,” underscoring that crypto channels are now part of mainstream Iran sanctions enforcement rather than a niche compliance issue.

TRM said flows between CoinEx and Iranian exchanges dropped sharply after the OFAC designations. After June 4, it said, volumes fell to below $150,000. The firm cautioned, however, that blockchain data alone may not show whether the activity stopped altogether or shifted to new infrastructure or private accounts.

CoinEx’s public response in the sourced material was limited. In reporting attributed to the Journal and summarized by other outlets, CoinEx founder Haipo Yang denied ties to Iran’s government, said the exchange uses screening and transaction-monitoring tools, and said CoinEx had begun blocking new signups from Iranian IP addresses. Those comments were reported by the Journal, according to outlet summaries of the paywalled article.

For now, the new pressure on CoinEx comes not from a fresh U.S. enforcement action, but from a detailed private analysis published at a moment when U.S. sanctions authorities are already moving aggressively against Iran’s crypto infrastructure.