US Sanctions Iran's BitBank Over Bitcoin Payments to IRGC
The U.S. Treasury has imposed sanctions on BitBank, an Iranian cryptocurrency exchange accused of facilitating payments in Bitcoin for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), between June and July, BitBank was used to move hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Bitcoin to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
BitBank is controlled by Babak Zanjani, an Iranian financier who was sentenced to death in 2016 for embezzling from the National Iranian Oil Company. His sentence was commuted in 2024, and he resurfaced last year backing regime-linked ventures.
The sanctions also cover Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, which built BitBank's software, as well as three executives of Dot One Value Creation Group.