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BITCOIN

Iran charges oil tankers Bitcoin for Hormuz passage

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 · from 5 podcasts, 7 episodes
5 SOURCESJack Mallers ShowBitcoin AndBanklessAI Daily BriefRabbit Hole Recap
  • Iran is imposing $1-per-barrel Bitcoin tolls on oil tankers, turning the Strait of Hormuz into a sanction-proof tollbooth.
  • Bitcoin’s price surge while gold falls marks its repricing as resilient, non-sovereign settlement infrastructure.
  • Military blockades fail where digital monetary rails succeed, exposing the physical limits of the petrodollar.

Iran has weaponized the world’s most critical oil chokepoint into a test for sovereign money. Amid a fragile ceasefire, Iranian officials are charging a $1-per-barrel transit fee for tankers navigating the Strait of Hormuz, payable in Bitcoin. This turns a geopolitical chokehold into a digital tollbooth, forcing the market to price in the reality that a major portion of global oil flow now depends on a non-sovereign ledger.

On Rabbit Hole Recap, Marty Bent and Matt Odell framed this as the logical evolution for a nation under heavy sanctions. Centralized alternatives like Tether are liabilities because the U.S. can freeze them. Bitcoin offers the only trustless option. The 10-minute block time is irrelevant for a $200 million tanker; attempting a double-spend would mean losing access to the waterway forever.

Bitcoin is no longer trading as a simple risk asset. Since the Iran war began on February 28, 2026, the BlackRock Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) gained 11.75%. Over the same period, the S&P 500 fell 0.6%, gold dropped 9.6%, and silver collapsed 18.72%. On Bitcoin And, David Bennett argued this divergence signals a repricing. Bitcoin is being valued as resilient monetary infrastructure - an open settlement rail that requires no intermediary approval when traditional banking channels are blocked.

"The US Navy is blockading Iranian ports, but they cannot block a private key."

- David Bennett, Bitcoin And

The physical blockade is failing. Jack Mallers argues the recent ceasefire is a fiction to calm panicking bond markets. The real metric is whether ships are moving. Traffic through the strait has fallen off a cliff. Iran’s demand for Bitcoin payments, reported by sources from Bitcoin And to Bankless as between $1 and $3 million per tanker, directly challenges the petrodollar system. If the U.S. Navy cannot forcibly reopen the waterway, the dollar’s role as the global energy currency ends.

This shift exposes the trust deficit in corporate crypto. Bennett called hardware wallet maker Ledger “toxic” after a musician lost nearly 6 Bitcoin to a fake Ledger app on Apple’s official store. Circle’s CEO refused to freeze $230 million in stolen USDC, citing a moral quandary, while lobbying for laws that would grant him the power to do so. These platforms remain dependent on sovereign approval, a vulnerability for those seeking true monetary sovereignty.

Meanwhile, institutional structures are being built on top of the asset. Michael Saylor, on Bankless, detailed MicroStrategy’s pivot into a credit issuer with its Bitcoin-backed “STRETCH” preferred stock. His long-term thesis depends on global bank adoption, which would remove coins from shadow banking systems and create a recursive price floor. The immediate reality is that Bitcoin is passing its highest-stakes utility test, functioning as money for enemies where traditional systems cannot.

"This move turns the world's most critical oil chokepoint into a sovereign test for Bitcoin's utility as 'money for enemies.'"

- Haseeb Qureshi, Bankless

The building is on fire, and Bitcoin is the liquidity smoke alarm. Mallers sees a looming credit crisis beneath the AI hype, with commercial real estate trading at 90% discounts and AI gutting the white-collar class that holds the system's debt. The Fed is trapped between inflation and bank solvency. In this fracture, a neutral, bearer asset that settles over the internet without permission is becoming the strategic monetary option.

BTC MarketsAdoptionWar
David BennettMarty BentMichael SaylorBlackRockCircleLedgerMicroStrategySquareTetherBitcoinUSDCFederal ReserveIranStrait of Hormuz

Source Intelligence

What each podcast actually said

The Jack Mallers Show
The Jack Mallers Show

Jack Mallers

Bitcoin & the Bigger Shovel • Apr 14

  • Iran reportedly demands ten concessions from the US for a ceasefire, including sanctions relief, payment of compensation, and the right to continue its nuclear program. Jack Mallers argues this would constitute a US loss if it cannot militarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz to enforce the petrodollar system.
  • Mallers cites analyst Rory to frame the real metric of the conflict: whether ships pass through the Strait of Hormuz. A real reopening would relieve supply-parched markets, while a fake announcement delays adjustment to ongoing oil shortages.
  • Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen off a cliff, a fact Mallers presents as the key economic indicator. He argues this proves Iran is using control over 20% of global oil supply to leverage the indebted US where it hurts financially.
  • The Financial Times reported Iran is using Bitcoin for vessel payments to avoid sanctions. Mallers cites trusted sources confirming Iran uses Bitcoin, not stablecoins, for transactions and possibly as a reserve asset.
  • Mallers states Bitcoin acts as a global liquidity smoke alarm, but its recent divergence from the falling software ETF (IGF) leaves the market direction unclear. He won't rule out a sharp move in either direction ahead of a potential crisis-driven money printing event.
  • His personal strategy is to stay humble, stack sats via DCA, and be a net producer while living cautiously. He believes the total addressable market for money is $400-$500 trillion, leaving Bitcoin with massive potential upside from its $1.5 trillion base.

Also from this episode:

Trade (1)
  • Mallers states the US's greatest export over the last four months has been non-monetary gold, refined in Switzerland and shipped to China. He presents this as evidence gold is currently lubricating global trade outside the dollar system.
Protocol (5)
  • Mallers argues Bitcoin is uniquely both a monetary asset and a monetary network, enabling trustless finality over the internet. Gold is only an asset, requiring trusted custodians for global settlement, which is its fatal flaw.
  • Bitcoin's current market cap is $1.49 trillion, making it smaller than many large tech firms. Mallers notes it is not yet large enough to absorb major sovereign flows, like China's trade surplus, without extreme price appreciation.
  • He argues monetary authorities face a suicide choice: cut rates into an inflationary oil shock or hike rates into a deflationary AI and credit crisis. His conclusion is the dollar must be devalued, benefiting neutral assets like Bitcoin and gold.
  • Mallers claims high taxes are theft that sidelined society's greatest producers from building public infrastructure. He points to El Salvador's zero-tax approach for firms like Tether, which then voluntarily invest in national infrastructure like airports, as a superior model.
  • He endorses Nayib Bukele's view that taxes uphold the illusion of funding a government actually financed by money printing. This debasement means citizens are stolen from twice: via direct taxation and via inflation.
Big Tech (1)
  • A Bloomberg headline claimed Powell and Yellen met bank CEOs due to an Anthropic AI model, but Mallers interprets this as a cover for discussing a brewing private credit crisis. He points to Fed queries on bank exposure to the $1.8 trillion private credit industry and funds facing large withdrawal requests.
AI & Tech (1)
  • Mallers cites Arthur Hayes's 'deflation in what you want, inflation in what you need' framework. AI is causing deflation in office real estate and consumer goods while layoffs raise delinquencies, but the energy shock creates inflation in essential commodities like oil.
BTC MarketsMacroEnergyBanking
Bitcoin And | Bitcoin & Economic News
Bitcoin And | Bitcoin & Economic News

Strait To Weird | Bitcoin News • Apr 13

  • David Bennett questions the feasibility of a US Navy blockade of Iranian ports, noting intelligence lag and uncertainty over detecting crypto payments.
  • Allard's analysis argues the Iran war highlights Bitcoin's value as an open settlement network immune to correspondent banking or state control.
  • Iran's 2025 crypto transaction volume was $8-11 billion, with researchers noting millions moved from Iranian exchanges after strikes.
  • Since the Iran war started February 28, 2026, IBIT gained 11.75% while SPY fell 0.6%, gold fell 9.6%, and silver fell 18.72%.
  • Trump meme coin holders are invited to a Mar-a-Lago luncheon, with the top 29 getting a private reception, drawing criticism for pay-to-play conflicts.
  • MicroStrategy bought 13,927 Bitcoin for $1 billion entirely through STRCH sales, bringing its holdings to 780,897 BTC at an average cost of $75,577.
  • Bennett warns against NewsBTC's constant negative Bitcoin headlines, noting their claims about STRCH failing were contradicted by MicroStrategy's $1 billion purchase.

Also from this episode:

Custody (2)
  • Garrett Dutton lost 5.9 Bitcoin ($420,000) to a fake Ledger app on the App Store, part of a pattern targeting Ledger users.
  • Bennett advocates for Cold Card over Ledger, citing Ledger's repeated hacks and scams, and notes Cold Card's open-source design.
Markets (1)
  • Bitget launched Pre-SPECS token offering retail exposure to SpaceX's $1.75 trillion IPO, but grants no equity, voting rights, or ownership.
Stablecoins (2)
  • Jeremy Allaire defended Circle's decision not to freeze USDC in the Drift exploit, citing legal obligation and moral quandary unless law enforcement directs action.
  • WLE threatens legal action against Justin Sun after he accused the Trump-linked project of treating users as ATMs over a $75 million stablecoin loan.
ETFs (1)
  • Morgan Stanley plans tokenized money market funds and crypto tax strategies after launching its Bitcoin ETF, aiming to expand beyond Bitcoin.
BTC MarketsStablecoinsBankingMacroCustody

Resident Evil | Bitcoin News • Apr 8

  • Morgan Stanley’s spot Bitcoin ETF (MSBT) began trading with a 0.14% expense ratio, undercutting BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) at 0.25%.
  • Nate Geraci notes Morgan Stanley's competitive edge comes from its army of wealth managers and trillions in client assets, not just its low fee. James Seyffart argues IBIT's liquidity dominance will be hard to replicate.
  • Iran is exploring collecting cryptocurrency, potentially Bitcoin, as a $1-per-barrel transit fee for oil tankers using the Strait of Hormuz during a two-week ceasefire.

Also from this episode:

Stablecoins (1)
  • A White House Council of Economic Advisors analysis found banning stablecoin rewards would boost community bank lending by only 0.026%, contradicting banking lobby warnings of catastrophic deposit losses.
AI & Tech (2)
  • Anthropic's AI model Claude Mythos Preview can autonomously find and exploit decades-old software vulnerabilities for under $50 in compute, raising potential security risks for open-source DeFi protocols.
  • Actress Mila Jovovich, in collaboration with Bitcoin coder Ben Sigman, developed an open-source AI memory tool called Mem Palace, inspired by ancient mnemonic techniques.
Protocol (5)
  • David Bennett views the Mythos reveal as a marketing campaign similar to the 'New Coke' strategy, designed to generate hype by touting an exclusive, powerful product.
  • A New York Times investigation suggests Adam Back may be Satoshi Nakamoto, citing similarities in writing patterns from cypherpunk mailing list archives. Back has consistently denied the claim.
  • OpenSats announced its sixteenth wave of grants, funding projects like Nostr Mail, a decentralized email system built on the Nostr protocol.
  • An academic paper concludes a quantum attack on Bitcoin mining using Grover's algorithm would require energy roughly equal to 3% of the sun's output, making it physically unfeasible.
  • David Bennett characterizes the simultaneous release of quantum FUD, Mythos AI warnings, and the NYT Satoshi story as a coordinated fear campaign to suppress Bitcoin's price.
BTC MarketsTradeWarAI InfrastructureMacro
Bankless
Bankless

"Fix the Money, Fix the World" — Michael Saylor's Master Plan (plus questions on Quantum and Ethereum) • Apr 13

  • Michael Saylor's 21-year thesis forecasts Bitcoin's price will reach $20-21 million per coin, implying a $400 trillion market cap as it becomes the world's dominant digital capital.
  • Saylor sees Bitcoin's long-term annualized growth rate averaging 29%, decelerating from the past five-year rate of 37%. He believes the asset is currently oversold and will be much higher by year-end.
  • MicroStrategy's STRC instrument is a variable-rate monthly preferred stock designed to strip away volatility and duration, offering pure yield. It recently traded with less than 2% trailing 30-day volatility, making it one of the S&P 500's least volatile securities.
  • Saylor frames STRC as asset-backed credit, converting a volatile capital asset (Bitcoin) into a stable income instrument. The model pays investors a fraction (e.g., one-third) of Bitcoin's expected capital appreciation as a dividend, using over-collateralization to manage risk.
  • Key drivers for Saylor's $20 million Bitcoin thesis include global regulatory recognition as a capital asset, bank credit networks forming against Bitcoin collateral, and the securitization wave via ETFs and digital credit instruments like STRC.
  • Saylor argues the current price suppression stems from re-hypothecation within the crypto shadow banking system, where cheap loans require collateral to be re-lent, creating selling pressure. Bank credit networks would reverse this by allowing non-rehypothecated loans.
  • MicroStrategy's business model is to perpetually issue digital credit (like STRC) to acquire more Bitcoin, aligning with equity investors who want amplification. Saylor sees no reason to diversify or stop accumulating, viewing Bitcoin as an infinitely scalable homogeneous collateral base.
  • Saylor's ultimate vision is to 'fix the money' by providing a billion people with a bank account yielding more than the inflation rate (e.g., 8%). This would be built on a stack of digital capital (Bitcoin), digital credit (STRC), and digital money distributed by traditional banks.

Also from this episode:

Protocol (2)
  • On the quantum computing threat to Bitcoin's cryptography, Saylor adopts an optimist's stance, warning against iatrogenic solutions. He believes the Bitcoin community will upgrade in due time and cautions against panic driven by alarmism seeking clicks or funding.
  • Saylor's view on Ethereum has evolved, acknowledging its role as a leader in the staking network segment for tokenizing securities, currencies, and commodities. He sees regulatory clarity as the next step but believes the ultimate utility and winners will be determined by market competition.
BTC MarketsAdoptionBankingMacroProtocol

ROLLUP: Iran Ceasefire Rally | Anthropic’s “Mythos” Model | Q-Day Divide | Stablecoin Yield Debate • Apr 10

  • A shaky two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran caused oil prices to crash 23% in eight hours and spurred a relief rally in other markets.
  • Iran is demanding tolls of $2-$3 million per transit, payable in Bitcoin or Yuan, to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, undermining the ceasefire terms.

Also from this episode:

Protocol (2)
  • Haseeb argues Iran's acceptance of Bitcoin and Yuan signals Bitcoin's role as a sanction-resistant alternative payment system within a weakening U.S. dollar regime.
  • A White House report argues against banning stablecoin yield, stating banks would lose only $2.1B in deposits from a $12T lending base, destroying far more consumer value.
AI & Tech (6)
  • Anthropic's unreleased 'Mythos' model can identify and exploit zero-day vulnerabilities in 83% of browsers and operating systems on the first try, including a 27-year-old OpenBSD bug.
  • Anthropic launched Project Glasswing, a $100 million cybersecurity coalition, to let select companies harden their systems with Mythos before public release.
  • Haseeb believes blockchains like Ethereum are a higher-risk target for AI exploits than smart contracts due to their immense complexity and larger attack surface.
  • Haseeb predicts Ethereum's multi-client architecture will give way to a single, formally verified codebase hardened by AI, as correlated exploits become more likely.
  • Google has accelerated its post-quantum cryptography transition timeline to 2029 and is urging the blockchain industry to prepare within three years.
  • Haseeb views the quantum threat as crypto's Y2K - a solvable coordination problem - and expects coins with exposed public keys to be blackholed if unupgraded.
Media (1)
  • A New York Times article used stylometric analysis to claim Adam Back is Satoshi Nakamoto, but Haseeb finds the methodology flawed and the conclusion implausible.
Stablecoins (1)
  • Haseeb doubts the White House report will sway the banking lobby, which opposes stablecoin yield due to profitability concerns masked as public-interest arguments.
Startups (1)
  • Monad's token is trading above its ICO price, a rare positive outlier in a broadly depressed token market, suggesting ecosystem success requires more than a fast start.
ModelsSafetyMacroBTC MarketsBanking
The AI Daily Brief: Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis
The AI Daily Brief: Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

Nathaniel Whittemore

Why Enterprise AI Has a Leadership Problem • Apr 10

Also from this episode:

AI & Tech (14)
  • The narrative of AI disruption impacting incumbent SaaS companies is fading on Wall Street, with initial fears that caused software indices to sell off by 20% now replaced by optimism.
  • AWS CEO Matt Garman dismissed claims that AI coding tools like Claude Code would disrupt major SaaS firms, arguing AI presents a significant opportunity for existing companies to build next-generation products due to their deep domain knowledge.
  • The cybersecurity sector is an area where AI disruption fears were overblown; analysts like Manthan Shah and Rob Owens argue AI will increase the attack surface, creating a multi-billion dollar opportunity and compounding the need for security, rather than reducing budgets.
  • Anthropic's recent tender offer saw few employees cashing out, indicating optimism that the company's value will continue to rise towards an anticipated IPO, despite some secondary markets valuing stock as high as $600 billion.
  • Anthropic is actively poaching top talent, hiring Eric Boyd, an 18-year Microsoft veteran and former Azure AI hardware/software lead, as its head of infrastructure to manage surging demand and lead a new team of cloud enterprise veterans.
  • Anthropic sealed a deal with Google and Broadcom to build 3.5 gigawatts of dedicated inference capacity starting next year, shifting from outsourcing infrastructure to taking a more active, in-house management role.
  • Elon Musk amended his lawsuit against OpenAI, requesting the judge unwind the company's for-profit conversion and remove Sam Altman and Greg Brockman from the non-profit board, clarifying he seeks no monetary damages for himself but for the non-profit.
  • Intel has partnered with Tesla and SpaceX on the TerraFab facility in Austin, Texas, to produce domestic AI chips, aiming for one terawatt per year and positioning it as the world's largest fab, with Intel overseeing crucial manufacturing steps.
  • A16Z research indicates 19% of Global 2000 companies and 29% of Fortune 500 are live-paying customers of leading AI startups, with coding, support, and search dominating enterprise AI adoption, and tech, legal, and healthcare leading industry uptake.
  • KPMG's quarterly survey shows average anticipated AI spend among companies with over $1 billion in revenue jumped from $114 million to $207 million over the past year, reflecting the rapid increase in agent deployment from 11% to 54% of organizations.
  • KPMG's data reveals an increasing concern over AI risks, with cybersecurity and employee misuse cited by 44% of executives as the most difficult societal challenge by 2030, up from 32%.
  • Organizations are prioritizing internal talent development for AI skills, with 87% focusing on upskilling/reskilling current employees, 68% hiring for new roles like AI architects, and 55% redesigning existing roles.
  • A Writer study found 73% of CEOs experience stress or anxiety from their company's AI strategy, with 61% fearing job loss if they fail to lead the AI transition, highlighting a significant leadership problem exacerbated by 39% lacking a formal AI revenue strategy.
  • Employee sabotage poses a serious threat to AI strategies, with 29% of employees (44% of Gen Z) admitting to it, and two-thirds of executives believing their company has suffered a data leak or security breach due to unapproved AI tool use.
Big Tech (1)
  • Goldman Sachs analyst Peter Oppenheimer believes the worst is over for tech stocks, citing opportunities created by their valuation relative to expected growth falling below the global aggregate market, following one of the weakest performances in 50 years.
Enterprise (3)
  • A significant leadership gap exists, with only 35% of employees viewing their manager as an AI champion, and 75% trusting AI more than their manager for certain work tasks, contributing to a two-tier workplace where 92% of C-suite cultivate an "AI elite."
  • The State of Digital Adoption report from WalkMe identified a 52-point trust gap between executives and employees regarding AI for complex decisions (61% vs. 9%) and a 67-point gap on having adequate AI tools (88% vs. 21%).
  • Approximately 93% of all enterprise AI spending goes to infrastructure, models, compute, and tools, with only 7% invested in the humans using these technologies, creating a recipe for disaster in AI adoption and value realization.
EnterpriseAgentsBig TechStartupsChips
Rabbit Hole Recap
Rabbit Hole Recap

RABBIT HOLE RECAP #404: THE RISE OF THE PETROSAT • Apr 9

  • Marty reports Iran is reportedly accepting Bitcoin as payment for tolls through the Strait of Hormuz, with transactions potentially averaging $2 million per tanker at $1 per barrel.
  • The Bitcoin ETF became the fastest-growing ETF in history, accumulating $100 billion in assets under management in 435 days, significantly faster than the previous record holder (VOOS ETF, 2011 days).
  • Morgan Stanley launched its own Bitcoin ETF, featuring lower fees than BlackRock's IBIT and leveraging its 16,000 advisors managing $7.4 trillion in client assets for potential inflows.
  • Miles Suter of Block clarified that Square is gradually rolling out Bitcoin payments to eligible US sellers, enabling 100% of newly onboarded users by default while expanding to existing sellers in phases.
  • Individuals from El Salvador who completed Mempool's Lightning Network Bootcamp in Tokyo are now joining the company's team at its new offices in El Salvador.

Also from this episode:

Protocol (5)
  • Marty argues Bitcoin is ideal for international financial transfers where trust is limited, citing its finality and censorship resistance as superior to traditional and stablecoin alternatives for sanctioned entities like Iran.
  • Marty highlights Iran's existing Bitcoin mining operations, noting it offers an efficient way for energy-rich, sanctioned countries to monetize their energy resources directly.
  • Matt notes France made a $12 billion profit on the gold trade and suggests the repatriation highlights gold's limitations in verifiability and transferability compared to Bitcoin.
  • BitChat was banned in China, which Marty considers a positive signal for the freedom technology project; its Android app has accumulated 3.2 million downloads since launching on July 6, 2023.
  • Marty argues that the ethical stance of Bitcoin maximalism has been compromised by the embrace of MicroStrategy's (MSTR) treasury products, which he likens to 'shitcoins' when viewed through a non-Wall Street lens.
Macro (1)
  • France repatriated 129 tons of gold by selling reserves in New York and repurchasing them in Europe, citing concerns over counterparty risk with foreign holdings.
Nostr (1)
  • OpenSats has issued its 16th wave of Nostr grants, committing 100% of donations to open-source contributors, supporting projects like Amethyst Desktop and Hamster, which utilizes ham radio for Nostr communication.
Politics (2)
  • Marty notes the Iranian government has blocked its people from global internet access for 41 days during conflict, making alternative communication tools like Starlink, local mesh networks, and ham radio critical.
  • Russia's Ministry of Digital Development is drafting legislation to mandate banks use MAX, a Kremlin-controlled messaging app, for confirming customer financial operations, granting officials broad discretion over transactions.
AI & Tech (2)
  • Block released Sprout, a Nostr-based open-source relay for AI agents, and Mesh LLM, which enables users to pool spare GPU capacity via Nostr to create an OpenAI-compatible API for open-source models.
  • Anthropic ceased OpenClaude subscription access, forcing users to its API where Marty's estimated costs for his The Financial Times project saw a 15x increase, reaching $3,000 per month.
TradeMacroModelsRegulation

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