US Hits Iranian Crypto Exchange with Sanctions Amid Strait of Hormuz Tensions

The US has imposed sanctions on BitBank, an Iranian cryptocurrency exchange controlled by Babak Zanjani, a sanctioned Iranian financier. According to Treasury, BitBank processed payments for ships to transit safely through the Strait of Hormuz and routed hundreds of millions of dollars to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Treasury described BitBank as a key component in Iran's digital assets-based sanctions-evasion infrastructure. The exchange was used to transfer funds paid to Iran's newly established Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority.