Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is extracting tolls from commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, requiring operators to pay using stablecoins or Chinese yuan.
According to a Bloomberg report, the IRGC has established an illicit toll system for the critical maritime chokepoint, granting safe passage and naval escorts to ships from deemed friendly nations while threatening those from hostile states.
Ship operators seeking to navigate the strait must contact an intermediary company linked to the IRGC. Operators are required to submit extensive documentation, including vessel ownership, flag registration, cargo manifests, destinations, crew lists, and automated identification system (AIS) tracking data.
The IRGC Navy’s Hormozgan Provincial Command processes this data to conduct background checks, ensuring the vessel has no ties to the United States, Israel, or other countries Iran considers enemies.
If a vessel is cleared, toll negotiations commence. The IRGC utilizes a one-to-five ranking system to grade the friendliness of nations, which influences the terms of the agreement. For oil tankers, the baseline toll is typically $1 per barrel of oil. The IRGC mandates that payments be settled in Chinese yuan or stablecoins, which are cryptocurrencies pegged to the value of hard fiat currencies.
Upon receipt of the cryptocurrency or fiat payment, the IRGC issues route instructions and a permit code. The ship broadcasts this passcode over VHF radio as it approaches the strait, where it is met and escorted by an Iranian patrol boat.
The toll system presents severe legal and compliance risks for the global shipping industry. Legal experts note that the imposition of these fees in international waters violates established rules of international maritime law.
Furthermore, transacting with the IRGC places ship owners and operators in direct conflict with global financial regulations. The IRGC is heavily sanctioned by the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom. Experts warn that making toll deals and transferring stablecoins to the group puts shipping companies at high risk of violating international sanctions and anti-money laundering (AML) laws.
Disclosure: AI has been used to assist in developing this story.
This article is published on BitPinas: Iran Extracts Stablecoin and Yuan Tolls for Safe Passage in Strait of Hormuz
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