Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent: “We've been applying a maximum pressure campaign on Iran's oil exports to cut off the sources of the regime's funding, and what we have seen in the past month is a total financial collapse of the regime.” @SchmittNYC @SecScottBessent pic.twitter.com/1oMzdv5fW6
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) January 15, 2026
Iran’s nationwide protests began in late December 2025 over economic grievances but quickly evolved into an openly regime-change movement, with demonstrators calling for the end of the Islamic Republic itself.
Security forces responded by using live fire against protesters, killing as many as 12,000 people, according to Iran International’s findings.
Still, threats by US President Donald Trump to launch strikes against Iran have left the fate of the country’s leaders in limbo.
‘US will trace Iran leaders’ assets abroad’
In his Wednesday interview, the US Treasury Secretary vowed to trace the huge sums of money wired out of Iran by the country’s leaders.
“What we do at Treasury is we follow the money, whether it is through the banking system or through digital assets. We are going to trace these assets and they will not be able to keep them.”
Separately, Israel’s Channel 14 reported on Wednesday that Iran’s leaders have transferred $1.5 billion to escrow accounts in Dubai over the past two days.
“1.5 billion dollars have been transferred out of Iran in the last hours, not through banks but via cryptocurrency with one clear destination: Dubai,” the report said citing a source familiar with the Revolutionary Guard’s economic activities.
The report alleged that the Supreme Leader’s son and one of his potential successors Mojtaba Khamenei is one of the people involved in these transfers.