A network connecting Iranian gambling sites processed at least $4 billion through crypto, with hundreds of millions reaching Binance.

At least $676 million in crypto flowed to Binance from wallets linked to Shelbit, an unlicensed Dubai crypto exchange allegedly operating at the center of a sprawling Iranian sanctions-evasion network, according to a Reuters investigation published on Friday, July 31.

About $540 million arrived after Dubai’s crypto regulator fined Shelbit in 2025 for operating without a license, blockchain data reviewed by Reuters showed.

Shelbit has processed at least $4 billion since May 2024. Its customers allegedly include a Farsi-language gambling network spanning more than 2,000 websites. Its wallets also interacted with Iran’s central bank and other sanctioned entities, per the report.

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Crypto investigators traced at least $125 million from Iran’s central bank to Shelbit, much of it directly. Another $20 million allegedly came from an unnamed Iranian Bitcoin mining entity through intermediary wallets.

Speaking with Reuters, Rich Sanders, a blockchain investigator focused on Iran, called Shelbit “an IRGC operation, and that’s plain as day.” The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s powerful military force, has allegedly used online gambling to move money abroad.

Reuters couldn’t determine, though, whether the IRGC directly controlled Shelbit or the gambling network.

Binance Says Its Compliance System Worked

Commenting on the findings, Binance told Reuters that Shelbit had never held an account on its platform and wasn’t sanctioned, though it didn’t dispute processing hundreds of millions of dollars for users associated with Shelbit.

Binance argued the transactions weren’t classified as high risk by an unnamed independent blockchain analytics firm, adding further that its compliance team investigated linked users, froze relevant accounts and reported them to law enforcement.

Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, the emirate’s crypto regulator, is investigating Shelbit’s alleged role in sanctions evasion and money laundering. Earlier in July, the agency ordered the exchange to stop all unlicensed crypto activity.

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