According to specialists from this Greek company, criminals are demanding payments in cryptocurrency from ship owners for "customs clearance" and safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz along the coasts of Iran.
«After providing the documents and assessing your creditworthiness by the Iranian security services, we will be able to determine the fee in cryptocurrency ($BTC or USDT). Only after this will your vessel be able to pass through the strait at the pre-arranged time», the message quoted by representatives of MARISKS states.
At least one vessel that came under fire on April 18 while attempting to leave the strait could have been the target of a similar scheme, suggested Maritime Risk Services.
Fraudsters are taking advantage of the shipping restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz, which began due to military actions between the USA and Iran. The USA maintains a blockade of Iranian ports, while the Islamic Republic alternates between lifting and reimposing bans on the passage of tankers and other vessels. Before the escalation of the conflict, about one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed through this route, writes Reuters.
Earlier, the representative of the Iranian Oil and Gas Exporters Union, Hamid Hosseini, told the Financial Times that the country's authorities plan to charge $1 for every barrel of oil transported through the Strait of Hormuz during the two-week ceasefire reached with the USA. Iranian authorities wanted to conduct calculations in bitcoins.