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Iran Launches Bitcoin Marine Insurance Platform '<Organization>HormuzSafe</Organization>', Boasting Potential Annual Revenue of Over $10 Billion

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This is Iran's most notable attempt to transform its military control over the Strait of Hormuz into a cryptocurrency-backed financial product.

Original Article Title: "Iran Launches Bitcoin Shipping Insurance Platform 'HormuzSafe,' Covering the Strait of Hormuz, Claimed Annual Revenue Could Exceed $10 Billion"
Original Article Author: Claude, DeepTech TechFlow

DeepTech Overview: The Iranian Ministry of Economy has launched a Bitcoin settlement maritime insurance platform called 'Hormuz Safe,' providing 'crypto-validated insurance policies' to Iranian shipowners and cargo owners passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian official media claims the platform's annual revenue could exceed $10 billion.

However, whether the platform has truly gone operational has yet to be independently confirmed. The feasibility faces a severe test due to Bitcoin's high volatility, U.S. sanctions compliance risks, and the controversial background of the mastermind Babak Zanjani. This represents Iran's most significant attempt to transform its military control over the Strait of Hormuz into a crypto financial product.

Iran is attempting to turn one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints into a Bitcoin settlement insurance market.

According to Bloomberg's report on May 18, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency cited documents from the country's Ministry of Economy and Finance, stating that Iran has launched a Bitcoin-backed maritime insurance service named 'Hormuz Safe,' targeting Iranian shipping companies and cargo owners wishing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

Fars claimed that the plan could generate over $10 billion in revenue for Iran but did not provide a timeframe or operational details.

Since the U.S. and Israel carried out airstrikes against Iran on February 28, Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz. During peacetime, the strait carries about 20% of global seaborne oil trade and 20% of liquefied natural gas exports.

The Iranian government and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have since been seeking to formalize their control over the waterway, including imposing tolls and other charges. Insurance services are the latest addition to their revenue-generating toolkit.

Crypto-Validated Policies, Bitcoin Instant Settlement

According to Fars sharing a screenshot of 'Hormuz Safe' website, the platform claims to offer Iranian shipping companies and cargo owners 'fast, verifiable digital insurance.' As reported by Bitcoin Magazine, the insurance coverage includes risks such as vessel inspection, detention, and seizure, but excludes war damage claims.

Fars quoted the website hormuzsafe.ir describing that the platform will provide 'crypto-verifiable insurance policies' for goods passing through the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and surrounding waters, with payments settled in Bitcoin. The goods are insured from the moment of confirmation on the blockchain, and cargo owners will receive a signed receipt. The website currently seems inaccessible outside Iran.

According to Bitcoin Magazine, the Iranian Ministry of Economy has been advancing this insurance plan since the end of April (early Ordibehesht in the Persian calendar). In April, Hamid Hosseini, a spokesperson for the Iran Oil, Gas, and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union, told the Financial Times that shipping companies could settle the Hormuz Strait passage fee in non-dollar currencies such as Bitcoin or RMB.

Rapid Institutionalization: From Passage Fees to Insurance Platform

Hormuz Safe is not a standalone initiative but the latest part of an institutionalized architecture Iran has been building around the Hormuz Strait.

As reported by Bitcoin Magazine, in March 2026, the Iranian Parliament passed the "Hormuz Strait Management Plan," formally legislating the passage fee system operated by the IRGC since mid-March. Under this framework, the IRGC charges fees to vessels passing through the strait. Operators must submit vessel ownership, cargo type, destination, and crew information to receive a passage permit code.

The fee starts at around $1 per barrel of oil, with fully loaded oil tankers facing fees of up to $2 million, payable in RMB.

On May 18, the Iranian Supreme National Security Council announced the official establishment of the "Persian Gulf Strait Authority" (PGSA) and opened an official account on X platform.

According to Euronews, this entity is positioned as an administrative body managing Hormuz Strait traffic and collecting passage fees, operating in coordination with the IRGC Navy.

Vessels must submit complete information, including ownership, insurance, crew lists, cargo declarations, and planned route, to the PGSA official email for approval and payment before obtaining passage permits.

Ebrahim Azizi, Chairman of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, stated on X platform that only commercial vessels cooperating with Iran can benefit from this mechanism, and parties involved in US-Israel military actions will be prohibited from using this route.

According to Windward intelligence analysis, as of May 18, the strait's traffic volume remains at only about 38% of pre-conflict levels, and the central Qeshm-Larak anchorage has seen six consecutive days of dark ship loitering. Approximately 369 IRGC speedboats are concentrated in a single area about 30 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, transitioning from coastal patrols to presence in the strait's main body.

Volatility, Sanction Risk, and Scam Shadows

Several analysts have expressed doubts about the practicality of Hormuz Safe.

Bloomberg pointed out that unlike USD-pegged stablecoins, Bitcoin experiences high price volatility, limiting its adoption as a medium of exchange. Foreign shipowners may be reluctant to use this mechanism due to concerns about violating U.S. sanctions against Iran.

Ryan Yoon, a senior analyst at Tiger Research, told Decrypt that the platform's technological and legal feasibility is "highly questionable." Despite being announced, no actual users have been confirmed yet. Shipping companies using Hormuz Safe would face the risk of being "immediately exiled from the global financial system."

Vikrant Sharma, CEO of Cake Wallet, told BeInCrypto that while Bitcoin can reduce some payment frictions, it is not a clean path to bypass the sanction system. Liquidity in marine insurance is a limiting factor, on-chain activities can be monitored, and any platform, broker, custodian, or USD-linked counterparty would bring compliance risks.

Sam Lyman, Research Director at the Bitcoin Policy Institute, offered a different perspective, explaining Iran's logic: the core appeal of Bitcoin is that "no one can freeze it."

According to Decrypt, since the outbreak of the war, numerous scams involving crypto "safe passage fees" have emerged. Scammers impersonate Iranian authorities and demand Bitcoin or USDT from vessel operators. Hormuz Safe appears to be a country-level independent initiative, but the line between authenticity and fraud is extremely blurred in the current environment.

Broader Picture: Iran Building a De-Dollarized Maritime Financial System

According to Bitcoin Magazine data, Iran's crypto ecosystem is estimated to reach $7.8 billion by 2025, with IRGC-related transactions accounting for about 50% of the country's total crypto transaction volume (as of Q4 2025). The Iranian government has used Bitcoin mined income to fund imports and hedge against oil revenue losses, with reported national mining costs of around $1,300 per coin.

CoinDesk's analysis is quite precise: the insurance framework is more cunning than collecting tolls directly. Cargo owners do not pay for passage on paper but purchase insurance and a financial responsibility certificate for sailing in waters claimed to be safe by Tehran. This allows Iran to monetize its geographical advantage in a more packaged manner.

A comment by Hacker News user everdrive has received high votes in the tech community: Part of the post-World War II U.S.-led world order was built on the foundation of the U.S. military maintaining open international waters. Iran has successfully challenged the U.S. at this level, which is shocking. Everyone knows Iran has the ability to close the strait when backed into a corner, but the emergence of this outcome still exposes a serious policy failure.

Regardless of whether Hormuz Safe can ultimately operate at scale, the signal it has sent is clear: Iran is building a complete set of administrative, governance, and financial infrastructure around the Strait of Hormuz, transforming military blockade into a sustainable sovereign income mechanism, with Bitcoin as the settlement layer of this system.