Israel-backed hackers wiped out $90 million in Revolutionary Guards crypto wallets during last month's war, calling it a landmark campaign to cripple Iran’s financial backbone, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Predatory Sparrow, the group believed to be aligned with Israeli intelligence, demonstrated “surgical precision and total freedom of access,” erasing data and destroying wallets linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), according to a report published Sunday.
By targeting Bank Sepah—the Guards’ central financial institution—hackers rendered Iran’s military payroll inoperative and triggered cascading disruptions. “Automated teller machines went dark, and online and in-branch services shut down,” the report said. “Salary and pension payments halted.”
The hackers also penetrated Nobitex, Iran’s dominant cryptocurrency exchange, extracting and burning stablecoins tied to IRGC operational funds.
Nearly 90 percent of the country’s crypto transactions pass through Nobitex, and the group extracted approximately $90 million in stablecoins linked to IRGC funds. These were then burned by transferring them to inaccessible blockchain addresses, permanently removing them from circulation.
“Predatory Sparrow reportedly extracted $90 million from wallets linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, then burned the assets by transferring the funds to addresses where they could not be retrieved, thereby permanently removing them from circulation,” the article said.
The strike ignited a broader panic. Though not directly attacked, Iran’s largest commercial bank, Bank Melli, couldn’t meet demand for cash. The Central Bank of Iran attempted to contain the collapse by injecting liquidity, but confidence evaporated. The rial fell more than 12 percent, and authorities suspended trading on the Tehran Stock Exchange.
The attack denied officials and security personnel access to their own money, directly challenging the government’s ability to sustain loyalty through financial means.
The report also said that the success of the cyber campaign has reframed US strategy. While President Trump said at the NATO summit, “We want [Iranians] to be prosperous, we want them to do well, but they can’t have nuclear weapons," it was a message to Iran's Supreme Leader that he must relinquish the nuclear program or face economic collapse.
The report said that sanctions that drive the Islamic Republic finances into vulnerable channels such as crypto and informal banking will likely be part of that strategy, in addition to shifting US cyber policy from passive backing to active involvement in offensive operations alongside Israel.
“Cyber warfare also rewards live-fire experience," the article said. "The more Washington and Jerusalem operate together in combat, the stronger their alliance grows. And when the next big test comes—as it surely will—the nations that have trained together under fire will dominate the field."
