Iran’s Defence Export Unit Lists Cryptocurrency as Payment Option for Military Hardware

Iran’s state defence export centre has added cryptocurrency to the payment methods it accepts for overseas sales of advanced weapons systems, according to information published on the agency’s website.

Mindex, the export arm of Iran’s Ministry of Defense, lists cryptocurrency alongside Iranian rials and barter as accepted forms of payment for prospective purchasers. The website indicates that buyers may acquire items such as missiles, tanks and drones using the digital assets option.

The announcement frames the payment change as a way to circumvent the impact of international sanctions. Mindex is responsible for the ministry’s foreign defence sales and states that it serves clients in 35 countries. The items on offer do not display prices on the public listing.

According to reporting by the Financial Times, the move is among the first known instances of a state agency explicitly accepting cryptocurrency for military equipment. The development follows a backdrop in which digital-asset flows to sanctioned jurisdictions have attracted growing attention from regulators and analysts.

Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis reported in early 2025 that U.S.-sanctioned countries had received nearly $16 billion in digital assets in the previous year, highlighting the existing use of cryptocurrencies in transactions that can evade traditional financial controls.

The timing of Mindex’s announcement comes after a re-escalation of United Nations sanctions on Iran in 2025. Those measures reinstated restrictions that had been lifted in 2015 as part of nuclear-related negotiations. The export centre’s public materials link the expanded payment options to the need to sustain defence trade under the constraints imposed by these international restrictions.

Details available on the Mindex site remain limited. The listing does not specify accepted coin types, wallet addresses, transaction processes, or pricing. It also does not identify specific foreign buyers or provide contractual or shipment timelines.

Available payment options, as presented on the site, include:

• Cryptocurrency
• Iranian rials
• Barter arrangements

Mindex’s role as the ministry’s overseas sales vehicle was reiterated on the site, which also claims an existing customer base across multiple countries. Beyond that declaration, no further transactional or logistical information was published publicly.

The use of cryptocurrencies in cross-border trade has been growing across several sectors, including trade with countries subject to financial restrictions. Proponents of digital assets point to features such as rapid settlement and reduced reliance on correspondent banking, while critics and regulators emphasize traceability challenges and the potential for sanctions circumvention.

Observers have previously noted instances in which digital assets facilitated transfers to sanctioned parties. The Chainalysis data cited on the topic underscores the scale of such flows and has been used to support calls for strengthened oversight of virtual asset transfers.

Mindex’s acceptance of crypto payments for military hardware introduces a new public example of a government-linked entity adopting digital assets for defence commerce. The move is likely to draw scrutiny from international policy-makers and enforcement agencies that monitor sanctions compliance. However, the Mindex announcement itself does not describe mechanisms for compliance with or avoidance of sanctions enforcement.

At present, available information is confined to the content posted on the export centre’s website and media reports summarising that content. No pricing, transactional processes, or buyer identities have been disclosed in the public domain.

The development contributes to a broader debate about the role of digital currencies in international trade, particularly in markets where traditional financial channels are limited by sanctions. How governments, multilateral institutions and private sector actors respond to such uses of virtual assets will shape regulatory and enforcement approaches going forward.

For now, Mindex’s published acceptance of cryptocurrency represents a distinct case in which a state-affiliated defence exporter has publicly offered digital assets as a means of payment for military systems.

Key Topics

Iran Defence Exports, Cryptocurrency Payments, Mindex, Military Equipment Sales, Sanctions Evasion, Blockchain Analytics, Chainalysis Report, Sanctioned Jurisdictions, Digital Asset Trade, Cross-border Crypto Transactions, Defense Trade Under Sanctions, Un Sanctions 2025, Regulatory Scrutiny, Barter And Iranian Rials