How Much Has Disappeared from Iranian Crypto Exchange Nobitex? The Real Loss May Be Far Beyond $100 Million

How much money has really vanished from crypto exchanges in Iran after the unprecedented hack of Nobitex, the country’s largest and most trusted digital asset platform? While headlines point to over $100 million, sources inside Israel suggest that the true scale of missing funds may be much greater. As pro-Israeli hackers executed a daring cyber strike on Nobitex, not only was this top Iranian crypto exchange devastated, but waves of fear and uncertainty swept across the entire Iranian crypto market. In this article, we dive deep into how the Nobitex attack unfolded, why it’s unlike any hack before, and what it means for the future of Iran’s crypto ecosystem.

How the Nobitex Hack Unfolded

On June 18, 2025, blockchain analysts across the world noticed abnormally large outflows from wallet addresses belonging to Nobitex. Renowned crypto investigator ZachXBT was among the first to sound the alarm: $48.65 million had vanished from Nobitex’s hot wallets within hours, with the losses soon surging past $81.7 million and eventually eclipsing $100 million. Later assessments from Iranian and Israeli sources revealed that Nobitexwere hit, with digital assets in wallets connected to the exchange dropping from $1.8 billion to less than $100 million virtually overnight.

What makes the Nobitex hack truly unique is the hackers' intent: instead of laundering the crypto, the Gonjeshke Darande group sent the funds to burn addresses—effectively destroying the assets forever. The addresses included inflammatory and political labels such as:

• TKFuckiRGCTerroristsNoBiTEXy2r7mNX

• 0xffFFfFFffFFffFfFffFFfFfFfFFFFfFfFFFFDead

• 1FuckiRGCTerroristsNoBiTEXXXaAovLX

More than $90 million in cryptocurrencies was publicly burned, with the group brazenly posting anti-Iranian regime messages and suggesting further attacks in the future. This radical move converted Nobitex’s disaster into the world’s most visible blockchain-based protest.

Billions at Risk: The Scope of the Nobitex Hack

Nobitex isn’t just another Iranian crypto exchange. Having processed more than $11 billion in total inflows since inception, Nobitex stands as Iran’s primary digital asset hub—far surpassing its competitors. In the wake of this breach, as much as 95% of Iranian crypto exchange reserves have disappeared, making this loss catastrophic for the country’s digital finance landscape.

Why Was Nobitex, the Leading Iranian Crypto Exchange, Targeted?

Nobitex serves as the backbone of Iran’s sanctioned crypto ecosystem, providing a bridge for Iranians seeking global digital currency markets and helping circumvent strict Western sanctions. According to analysis from Israeli media, not only does Nobitex facilitate legal cross-border transactions for citizens, but it has also reportedly been used by the Iranian regime to move funds, evade sanctions, and support activities by groups recognized as foreign terrorist organizations.

Gonjeshke Darande, the hackers behind the attack, specifically accused Nobitex of being a “war-time bank” for Iran’s government and Revolutionary Guard, claiming the exchange has actively helped the regime evade international restrictions and fund proxies.

This Was Not the First Strike: Gonjeshke Darande’s History of Cyberattacks on Iran

The Nobitex incident is a bold escalation, but it’s not the first time Iranian infrastructure has been targeted by Gonjeshke Darande. The group has previously claimed responsibility for:

• 2021: Sabotaging Iran’s national gas station network.

• 2022: Setting fire to Iranian steel plants through cyberattacks.

• 2024: Crippling the Sepah Bank’s IT backbone.

With the Nobitex hack, the group has shifted focus squarely onto Iran’s financial lifelines, placing Iranian crypto exchanges in the crosshairs for both political and economic reasons.

Nobitex Response & Iran’s Policy Shift

In an urgent response, Nobitex issued a statement: it had isolated all servers from external access to contain the fallout, and claimed some of the fund transfers were proactive defensive moves. However, it admitted that about $100 million in crypto was destroyed through hacker operations and categorized the incident as “psychological sabotage” rather than a standard theft.

In the aftermath, Iranian authorities introduced emergency measures for all domestic crypto exchanges. The Central Bank of Iran imposed strict new operating hours—from 10 am to 8 pm local time—to help authorities immediately triage further incidents. According to analysts, this “curfew” is both an attempt to centralize control and a reflection of the regime’s desire to more tightly supervise crypto trading after the Nobitex hack exposed significant vulnerabilities.

Iran’s Crypto Market at a Crossroads

The Nobitex incident has triggered a crisis of confidence in Iranian crypto exchanges, collapsing reserve levels and raising questions about crypto’s role in sanctioned economies.

There’s now little doubt: Iranian crypto exchange security is a matter of national security, and older assumptions about “neutral” digital assets don’t hold in a world where cyber conflict is global.