Outbound crypto transfers from Nobitex, Iran’s largest digital asset exchange, surged 700% within minutes of a US airstrike on Iran. Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic said the spike came right after the first round of military action by the US and Israel, drawing attention to how crypto is being used during periods of acute geopolitical stress.
A sharp spike appeared almost immediately after the attack
Elliptic’s data showed a sudden jump in crypto assets moving out of Nobitex just after the strike. The pattern was highly concentrated in a short window. In on-chain terms, that kind of burst often signals that holders are trying to move assets quickly as political and military risks rise.
The report said Nobitex has processed $7.2 billion in crypto transactions, including inflows and outflows, since the start of 2025. It also said the platform has more than 11 million users, making it one of the most important pieces of crypto market infrastructure inside Iran.
Rial-to-crypto conversion gives users an exit route
Nobitex allows users to convert Iranian rial into crypto and withdraw funds to overseas wallets or foreign exchanges. That structure lets capital move across borders without relying on the traditional banking system. It also raises questions about whether crypto can function as an alternative path around international financial controls and scrutiny.
Preliminary on-chain tracing found that some of the recent outflows from Nobitex moved to foreign crypto exchanges that had previously received Iranian-linked funds. Analysts cited in the source said this may reflect efforts by some holders to move money out of the country faster as geopolitical risks intensify.
Outflow peaks have appeared several times this year
This was not the first major outflow event on Nobitex in 2025. The source said the exchange has recorded multiple peaks since January, with the largest one on January 9, when large-scale protests broke out in Iran and authorities later imposed internet restrictions.
One detail stood out. During the network disruption, outflows dropped sharply but did not fall to zero, suggesting that crypto assets held at the exchange could still be moved through other channels even when the website was not fully accessible. Two other notable spikes were reported after the US announced new sanctions on Iran.
Public blockchains expose unusual flows in real time
Crypto can offer a way around parts of the banking system, but blockchain transparency cuts both ways. The same public ledger that enables transfers also makes unusual activity easier to detect. In this case, the jump in Nobitex outflows was visible almost immediately through on-chain monitoring.
For regulators and compliance teams, open blockchain records can make cross-border fund tracking faster in some cases than in traditional finance. The post-strike activity at Nobitex has put that contrast in focus again, especially as Iran’s crypto market operates under pressure from sanctions and political instability.