The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned two cryptocurrency exchanges as part of Washington's expanding campaign against Iran's digital asset networks. According to the latest press release, Shelbit Exchange and Iran-based Aban Tether were targeted for allegedly helping Iran move money outside the traditional banking system. The sanctions come amid the US-Iran war, raising the stakes for stablecoin issuers and exchanges handling funds connected with Iranian entities. As reported by Reuters, the designation follows a Reuters investigation published on July 31 that identified Dubai-based Shelbit as the hub of a $4 billion Iranian sanctions evasion scheme. The Treasury also sanctioned Siavash Kayvanpour and several companies tied to him in Georgia, Poland and the United Arab Emirates. The action covers two major exchanges and a network of related companies accused of laundering illicit proceeds for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other sanctioned actors.
The Treasury revealed significant cryptocurrency transactions involving sanctioned entities. IRGC-linked wallets sent more than $1 million in crypto to Shelbit addresses while more than $2 million flowed from Shelbit addresses to IRGC wallets, according to the Treasury statement. Wallets belonging to or controlled by Kayvanpour also sent over $2 million to Nobitex, Iran's largest crypto exchange. According to Reuters, tens of millions of dollars of the crypto that passed through Shelbit came from a suspected Iranian bitcoin mining operation, which mints new digital coins. Additionally, many millions of dollars more were linked to the illegal gambling network operated by two high-profile Iranian social media influencers. The sanctions represent a significant escalation in the Trump administration's maximum pressure campaign against Tehran, targeting networks that allegedly helped Iran evade international sanctions and transfer funds secretly. The Treasury also designated UAE-based Shelbit General Trading LLC, Poland-based Shelbit Technologies Ltd, UAE-based Crypto Home DMCC and UAE-based NFT Home DMCC, stating they are owned, controlled or directed by Kayvanpour or Shelbit.
The latest sanctions extend beyond crypto exchanges to include a comprehensive network of financial entities. The OFAC also sanctioned a network of foreign exchange houses, shell companies and individuals that helped Iran's shadow banking system move hundreds of millions of dollars, including funds tied to overseas oil sales. According to Reuters, Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) issued a notice on July 24 saying Shelbit was in violation of money-laundering and terrorism financing laws. VARA stated that "the exposure identified by VARA extends beyond consumer protection to more egregious cross-border transactions with the propension to impact the integrity of the UAE financial system." This action represents the latest in a string of US measures against Iran's crypto finance network. The campaign has already targeted Zedcex and Zedxion in January, Nobitex and several other Iranian crypto exchanges in June, and four crypto wallets linked to Iran's central bank last month.
The expanding sanctions campaign puts significant pressure on the global cryptocurrency ecosystem and stablecoin issuers. As reported by Reuters, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that "Whether in dollars, rials, or crypto, Treasury will hunt down and dismantle the illicit financial networks that keep the regime afloat." The designations come as the US-Iran war has raised the stakes of Washington's push to cut Tehran off from foreign currency and global financial markets. While cryptocurrencies may offer sanctioned entities another route to move funds when banks cut them off, blockchain transactions can also leave a public trail that investigators and analytics firms can follow. The sanctions block all designated property in U.S. jurisdiction, expose financial institutions to penalties, and align with a $15 million State Department reward for information disrupting IRGC financial networks. The action also intersects with broader enforcement efforts, with Treasury pointing to sanctions-risk guidance on Iranian digital asset exchanges and noting that whistleblowers may qualify for awards if their information leads to enforcement penalties above $1 million.
The latest sanctions represent a significant expansion of US enforcement capabilities against Iranian digital asset networks. Chainalysis estimated that Nobitex accounts for roughly half of Iran's cryptocurrency trading activity, making it a critical target for sanctions enforcement. The Treasury published several Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tron and Solana addresses as part of the action, requiring crypto companies to add these identifiers to their transaction-screening systems. US authorities have seized or frozen nearly $1 billion in cryptocurrency connected to Iranian exchanges and wallets since the conflict began, with $131 million frozen in July from Iran-linked crypto held in wallets connected to the country's central bank. Tether froze approximately $344 million in USDT across two Tron addresses linked to Iranian networks in April. The use of centralized stablecoins provides authorities with enforcement tools that don't exist with assets like Bitcoin, as issuers can block transfers from designated addresses while transactions involving decentralized assets generally require control of private keys.
