A major investigation has revealed that the founders of Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, Nobitex, are members of one of the country’s most powerful families.
Ali and Mohammad Kharrazi established the platform in 2018 but concealed their true identities by using the surname “Aghamir” in corporate records.
The Kharrazi family maintains direct ties to the highest levels of the Iranian establishment, including the newly installed Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Mojtaba Khamenei rose to power in February 2026 after his father was killed in a US airstrike, according to recent reports.
The brothers’ grandfather was a tutor to Mojtaba, while their father founded an Iranian political group and helped staff the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Nobitex has grown to become a cornerstone of the Iranian economy, processing an estimated 70% of the nation’s digital asset transactions.
Blockchain firms like Elliptic and Chainalysis have tracked significant flows from sanctioned entities, highlighting the Global Financial Sanctions bypass facilitated by the platform.
Ordinary Iranians, locked out of international banking, increasingly rely on the platform to hold and move money amid rising geopolitical tensions.
Details regarding the movement of state funds surfaced following a public dispute involving Babak Zanjani, an Iranian billionaire convicted of fraud.
Zanjani published wallet addresses on social media that allowed analysts to trace at least $20 million in sanctioned central bank funds through Nobitex.
Crystal Intelligence discovered that the platform processed over $100 million during the US-Israel war with Iran in early 2026.
During that conflict, at least $54 million was withdrawn from the exchange, with a significant portion of those funds moving abroad.
The United States has responded by seizing nearly $500 million in Iranian-linked crypto under a program known as Operation Economic Fury.
While regional exchanges face scrutiny, institutional digital asset products in global markets are seeing major shifts in capital allocation.
According to SoSoValue data, Ethereum spot ETFs recorded a net outflow of $82.47 million during the trading week of April 27 to May 1, 2026.
The performance of specific funds during this period highlights a divergence in institutional sentiment toward Digital Asset Trading vehicles.
| Ethereum Spot ETF | Weekly Net Flow | Historical Net Inflow |
|---|---|---|
| Blackrock (ETHA) | -$71.4491 Million | $11.9 Billion |
| Fidelity (FETH) | -$50.256 Million | $2.29 Billion |
| Blackrock (ETHB) | +$44.4975 Million | $501 Million |
As of May 2026, the total net asset value of all Ethereum spot ETFs stands at $13.6 billion, representing 4.93% of Ethereum’s market cap.
Despite the recent weekly outflows, the historical cumulative net inflow for these products remains high at $12.02 billion.
Beyond established assets like Ethereum, new tokens such as “first in line, last to care” (SCALP) are emerging on specialized exchanges.
SCALP is currently trading on the PumpSwap exchange, where it recorded a 24-hour trading volume of $664,728.
The most active liquidity for SCALP remains on PumpSwap, which handled $12.15 million in trades for the asset in a single day.
The connection between Nobitex and the Iranian state was underscored by an airstrike on April 1, 2026, that hit the home of Kamal Kharrazi.
Kamal Kharrazi, the brothers’ great-uncle and a former foreign minister, died of his injuries days after his wife was killed in the strike.
The Supreme Leader publicly extended condolences to the Kharrazi family, further confirming their high status within the regime’s inner circle.
Nobitex management continues to deny any government affiliation, asserting that illicit transactions occur without their knowledge.
However, analysts note that the platform continued to process transactions for those on a state-approved “whitelist” during total internet blackouts.
The US Department of Justice and other international agencies continue to monitor the platform as part of wider efforts to curb sanctioned financial activity.
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