U.S. Treasury Hits BitBank with Sanctions Over Alleged IRGC Bitcoin Transfers

The U.S. Treasury has added another layer to its sanctions campaign against Iran's crypto infrastructure by targeting digital asset exchange BitBank.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated BitBank as part of a network tied to Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, alleging that the platform was used to facilitate the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Bitcoin to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps between June and July.

BitBank developer Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company and several individuals linked to Zanjani's wider business network were also sanctioned. The action is part of a broader Treasury campaign against Iran-linked financial infrastructure, with previous enforcement rounds targeting banks, exchanges, facilitators, and digital asset businesses that help sanctioned actors move money outside conventional banking channels.

The BitBank sanctions are significant because they mark the first time U.S. enforcement has treated crypto infrastructure as a whole entity, rather than just tracing specific wallets or addresses. This approach suggests that the government is increasingly treating crypto businesses like traditional financial institutions, with compliance teams expected to treat digital asset sanctions risk as part of ordinary financial compliance.