US Sanctions BitBank, Iranian Crypto Exchange, Over Alleged IRGC Bitcoin Transfers

The US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control has sanctioned BitBank, an Iranian cryptocurrency exchange, for allegedly facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in bitcoin transactions to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This action is part of Operation Economic Outcast and targets a network controlled by Babak Zanjani, an Iranian financier who was previously sentenced to death in Iran over embezzlement linked to the National Iranian Oil Company.

The designation also affects BitBank's software developer, Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, as well as three associates of Zanjani's network. According to the Treasury, BitBank was used by the Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority, already under OFAC sanction, to transfer payments tied to its bitcoin-settled scheme for vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz.

The US government estimates that Iran had targeted over $10 billion in revenue from this scheme. The designation demonstrates increased scrutiny on cryptocurrency's role in sanctions evasion and highlights the US Treasury's efforts to disrupt Iranian financing through digital assets.