US Sanctions Bitcoin Exchange Tied to Iranian Regime
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that efforts to finance the Iranian regime using cryptocurrencies are not beyond the reach of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
As part of 'Operation Economic Outcast', a campaign launched in August, OFAC sanctioned BitBank, a digital asset exchange controlled by Babak Zanjani, along with its developer, Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company.
Zanjani's associates, Hossein Ali Zaker Hossein, Mohammad Mahdi Zaker Hossein, and Seyed Adel Heidari, were also sanctioned. The designation highlights the Treasury's broader push against Iranian crypto ties.
Treasury said that Zanjani used BitBank between June and July to transfer hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin (BTC) to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).