Author: Deep Tide TechFlow

Deep Tide Introduction: Less than two weeks after Iran announced that it would charge Bitcoin tolls in the Strait of Hormuz, scammers impersonated Iranian officials, sending fake messages to stranded oil tankers demanding BTC and USDT.

At least one tanker that paid the fake toll was fired upon by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard while attempting to pass. On-chain analysis firms TRM Labs and Chainalysis both stated that there is no on-chain evidence of large-scale cryptocurrency toll payments discovered to date.

Iran announced that it would collect tolls in Bitcoin, and scammers turned this narrative into a weapon within two weeks.

According to a report by Reuters on April 21, Greek maritime risk management company MARISKS issued a warning: unidentified individuals impersonated Iranian authorities, sending false messages to ships stranded on the western side of the Strait of Hormuz, demanding payment of "tolls" in BTC or USDT in exchange for safe passage. MARISKS believes that at least one ship that was fired upon by Iranian Revolutionary Guard patrol boats on April 18, when Iran briefly opened the Strait, fell victim to this scam.

The absurdity of the event lies in the entire causal chain: a sovereign nation announces it will charge Bitcoin tolls, scammers adopt this narrative to deceive, ship owners believe it and pay, and then they are shot at by the real Iranian military.

From "National Settlement Tool" to Attack Surface for Scammers

The story begins in early April.

The Iranian parliament passed the "Strait of Hormuz Management Plan" on March 30 to 31, formally enshrining the toll system that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard has been implementing since mid-March into law. According to the Financial Times, Hamid Hosseini, spokesperson for the Iran Oil, Gas, and Petrochemical Exporters Association, confirmed that fully loaded tankers must pay a fee of $1 per barrel, with payment methods including Bitcoin, USDT, or RMB. A super tanker carrying 2 million barrels of crude oil could face a toll of up to $2 million per crossing.

Upon the announcement, the price of Bitcoin surged by 5%, briefly breaking through $72,700. The crypto community quickly interpreted it as a milestone validation for Bitcoin as a "neutral settlement layer in international trade." Institutions like Bitwise even linked it to predictions of Bitcoin exceeding $1 million.

But there were also many skeptics.

Sam Lyman of the Bitcoin Policy Institute pointed out in a report on April 15 that collecting Bitcoin tolls on a large scale with existing technology is "almost impossible." TRM Labs' Global Policy Director Ari Redbord told Fortune magazine that on-chain data does not show any evidence of large-scale toll payments taking place. Chainalysis noted in its analysis report that on-chain activities of Iranian-related entities primarily rely on USDT on the Tron network rather than Bitcoin.

Scammers don't care about these technical debates. They only need a credible narrative, and the Iranian government had already written the script for them.

A ship that paid fake money was shot at

According to reports from Reuters and DL News, the wording of the scam messages closely mimicked official rhetoric. Scammers demanded ship owners submit vessel documentation, claiming that "Iranian security authorities" would conduct an assessment, and once passed, payments needed to be made in BTC or USDT, after which the ships could "safely pass through the Strait at the scheduled time."

About 400 ships and approximately 20,000 crew members are currently stranded in the Persian Gulf. The U.S. has locked down Iranian ports, and Iran has repeatedly opened and closed the Strait to traffic, making ship owners' anxiety understandable. Scammers precisely exploited this anxiety.

On April 18, Iran briefly opened the Strait, and some ships attempted to pass. According to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), two Iranian Revolutionary Guard patrol boats fired upon a tanker attempting to leave the Strait, forcing it to turn back. MARISKS believes this tanker had previously paid cryptocurrency "tolls" to scammers, thinking it had obtained passage permission.

Payment was made, but the money never reached Iran. The ship was still shot at.

Paying scammers may also violate sanction laws

Ironically, even if the ship owner realizes they have been scammed, the legal risks do not disappear.

Xue Yin Peh, Chainalysis' Investigation Strategy Director, told Decrypt that regardless of whether the recipient truly is the Iranian authorities, as long as the payer intends to make a payment to a sanctioned regime, it could constitute a violation of OFAC, EU, and UK sanction regulations. In other words, even if you think you are paying Iran, if the money ends up in the scammer's pocket, regulators can still pursue your "subjective intent."

Isabella Chase, TRM Labs' Europe, Middle East, and Africa Policy Lead, also warned that any wallet address associated with such requests should be regarded as "high risk," and cryptocurrency payments do not provide any "safe harbor" in terms of sanctions compliance.

This has created an almost intractable dilemma for ship owners: paying Iran is a sanctions violation, paying scammers could also be a sanctions violation, and refusing to pay means they can only continue drifting in the Persian Gulf.

"Bitcoin is irreversible" turns from advantage to defect

The most thought-provoking aspect for the cryptocurrency industry in this entire affair is how Bitcoin's core feature performs in this scenario.

Benzinga pointed out the key issue in its report: once cryptocurrency payments are sent, they cannot be withdrawn. Traditional bank transfers at least have the possibility of being frozen or returned, but once Bitcoin and USDT are sent out, the funds are lost. This feature, termed "trustless settlement" in normal business contexts, turns into "irretrievable loss" in the overlapping scenario of war and scams.

This may be the most absurd crypto story of 2026... Iran's plan to collect tolls in Bitcoin may have never truly materialized, but scammers have made money off this story, and a tanker has paid the price.