The Venezuela and Iran cases highlight the stablecoin's "dual nature," where USDT serves both as a tool for daily transactions and for circumventing sanctions

BlockBeats News, January 12th. Recently, the situation in Venezuela and Iran has been turbulent, once again putting the dual role of stablecoins in the spotlight. Dollar-denominated stablecoins, especially Tether (USDT), have become an important value storage and payment tool for ordinary people in countries facing high inflation and restricted financial systems. On the other hand, they have also been used by some sanctioned entities for cross-border fund transfers and sanctions evasion.

In Iran, the Rial's long-term devaluation coupled with sanctions and social unrest have made cryptocurrency assets an important tool for the public to hedge against inflation and systemic risks. In 2025, Iran's largest exchange was hacked, and Tether's addresses were blacklisted multiple times, causing setbacks in stablecoin adoption. At the same time, the Iranian government set an annual limit on stablecoins in September last year, stipulating that individuals can hold a maximum of $10,000 and annual purchases should not exceed $5,000.

However, the other side of stablecoins has also attracted regulatory attention. Blockchain analytics company TRM Labs reported that since 2023, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran has been accused of transferring over $1 billion in stablecoin assets through two "UK front companies" to build a cross-border, cross-jurisdictional fund channel.

In Venezuela, the penetration of USDT is similarly significant. Due to the continuous devaluation of the local currency, the Bolivar, and the lack of trust in the banking system by the population, stablecoins have been widely used for daily payments, ranging from basic services to small transactions. Reports also indicate that the Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA has been using USDT extensively for oil settlements since 2020, with an estimated approximately 80% of its oil income settled through Tether to circumvent the settlement restrictions imposed by sanctions.

Analysts point out that the cases of Iran and Venezuela once again demonstrate that stablecoins simultaneously play a dual role of "people's livelihood infrastructure" and "compliance challenge source" in the global financial system. This contradictory nature may continue to be the focus of regulatory and market games in 2026.