Reuters has published a major investigation examining how the crypto venture tied to U.S. President Donald Trump intersected indirectly with the same blockchain infrastructure used by Iran’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Nobitex.
What the investigation found
According to Reuters, Iran’s Nobitex exchange processed at least $2.3 billion in cryptocurrency transactions since 2023 using two major blockchain networks:
- Tron, founded by crypto billionaire Justin Sun
- BNB Chain, linked to crypto exchange Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao
These same crypto figures and platforms also became early supporters of World Liberty Financial, the digital finance project launched by Trump and members of his family.
Reuters emphasized that there is no evidence Trump or his family knowingly participated in Iranian transactions or directly interacted with Nobitex. The investigation instead focused on the broader overlap in crypto infrastructure and financial networks.
Why Nobitex matters
Reuters previously reported that Nobitex is deeply embedded in Iran’s alternative financial system and has allegedly been used by:
- Iran’s central bank
- The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)
- Other sanctioned Iranian entities
Blockchain analysts cited in the report said Nobitex encouraged users to utilize Tron-based transactions because they were harder to trace and helped avoid sanctions-related scrutiny.
Reuters also stated that:
- About $7.8 billion previously flowed between Nobitex and Binance from 2018–2022
- Much of that activity used Tron’s cryptocurrency infrastructure
- Iran-linked crypto movement continued during the current regional conflict involving Iran, Israel, and the United States
Trump crypto links under scrutiny
The report highlights growing ethical and political concerns around World Liberty Financial because:
- Justin Sun invested heavily in the Trump-linked project during its early phase
- Binance later supported World Liberty’s stablecoin USD1
- The Trump administration adopted strongly pro-crypto policies after returning to office in 2025
Reuters noted that Trump’s administration also reduced crypto enforcement pressure and later pardoned Binance founder Zhao after earlier legal troubles. Critics argue these moves may create perceived conflicts of interest because of the financial ties between Trump-linked ventures and major crypto players.
Responses from the crypto companies
According to Reuters:
- Binance and Tron denied knowingly helping sanctioned Iranian actors
- Both companies said blockchains are public decentralized systems and they cannot fully control who uses them
- Analysts said the visible transaction numbers may actually underestimate the total volume because Nobitex frequently changes wallet addresses to avoid tracking
