$61 Million in Crypto Seized as US Targets Iranian Oil Laundering Scheme

The US Department of Justice has filed a civil forfeiture complaint against $61 million in cryptocurrency, alleging it's proceeds from sales of sanctioned Iranian crude oil and petroleum products.

The illicit funds are said to have been laundered through a network of cryptocurrency actors in China and elsewhere, with over $1.5 billion in black-market oil money intended to benefit the Iranian military.

Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale, two Chinese companies, allegedly used trading accounts at Binance to funnel the illicit funds to Iran and its proxies, where they were used to finance terrorist and other activities of the Iranian government.