Negotiations between the US and Iran in Switzerland have pushed into a second day, with the Strait of Hormuz closed, Trump issuing existential threats, and Bitcoin sitting at the center of an increasingly bizarre sanctions standoff.
The talks, which began on June 21, are aimed at brokering a ceasefire. Iran has shuttered the most important chokepoint in global energy, a waterway responsible for roughly 20% of the world’s oil and LNG shipments. Tehran has been demanding Bitcoin payments for ships transiting the strait.
The Hormuz gambit and crypto sanctions
Trump warned Iran that they “won’t have a country” if they maintain control over the strait’s closure.
Iran reportedly began demanding cryptocurrency payments, primarily Bitcoin, for Hormuz transit tolls as early as April 2026. The US Treasury has frozen approximately $344 million in digital assets linked to Iranian crypto wallets.
