US Sanctions Iranian Bitcoin Exchange for Facilitating IRGC Transactions

The US Treasury's Office of Foreign Asset Control has sanctioned an Iranian bitcoin exchange and several executives for facilitating transactions on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The exchange, BitBank, was used to process payments from Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority, a front company that enables the IRGC to charge safe-passage fees for the Strait of Hormuz.

In July, both Hormuz Safe and Persian Gulf Marine Insurance Company were sanctioned by OFAC for facilitating the IRGC's finances. The Treasury warned at the time that Hormuz Safe generates revenue on behalf of the IRGC in an attempt to give the regime tighter control over shipping activity.

The Treasury has now also sanctioned Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, the developer of BitBank's software; and three executives of Zanjani's digital finance empire. Babak Zanjani is a regime insider who was sentenced to death in 2016 for stealing from the National Iranian Oil Company.