US Sanctions BitBank and Associates Over Alleged Crypto Sanctions Evasion

The US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed sanctions on BitBank, its developer Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, and three associates linked to Iranian financier Babak Zanjani. The measures were announced as part of Operation Economic Outcast.

OFAC alleges that the group operated a cryptocurrency network to evade US sanctions. Specifically, they claim that Zanjani used BitBank to move hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin between June and July to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The agency highlights regulatory and security risks for exchanges, cross-border Bitcoin flows, and crypto compliance.