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Illicit Iranian gambling network helped pull off a $4 billion sanctions dodge: Reuters
Regulators say the unlicensed exchange moved hundreds of millions to Binance and processed funds tied to Iran’s central bank and IRGC-linked wallets.
- A Reuters investigation identified Shelbit, an unlicensed Dubai-based crypto exchange, as the central hub for an Iranian sanctions-evasion network that processed roughly $4 billion since May 2024, including funds linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
- Years ago, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps took control of large-scale gambling networks to bypass banking sanctions, employing influencers Pooyan Mokhtari and Sasha Sobhani to promote sites funneling crypto through intermediaries like Shelbit.
- Blockchain data reveals at least $676 million flowed from Shelbit to Binance since May 2024, though a Reuters reporter found the Deira office contained only 13 battered watches and no crypto equipment, contradicting its operational claims.
- Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority issued an enforcement notice on July 24, 2025, ordering Shelbit to cease unlicensed operations, citing money-laundering and terrorism-financing violations threatening the United Arab Emirates' financial system integrity.
- This operation represents one of the largest Iranian sanctions-evasion schemes discovered since 2016, illustrating how state actors exploit unlicensed exchanges and shell companies to maintain access to global markets despite international financial restrictions.
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The $4 billion Iran sanctions evasion network through crypto
The United States has sanctioned Iranian exchanges, frozen nearly $1 billion in cryptocurrency, and traced $3.84 billion in Iran-linked flows through a single offshore exchange, exposing the scale of sanctions evasion through digital assets. The numbers tell the story before…
Coverage Details
Total News Sources29
Leaning Left2Leaning Right4Center6Last UpdatedBias Distribution50% Center
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources are Center
50% Center
L 17%
C 50%
R 33%
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