Crypto
US Slaps Sanctions on Iranian Crypto Exchange BitBank Amid IRGC Ties
The U.S. Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on Iranian cryptocurrency exchange BitBank.
According to the U.S. authorities, the platform was used to transfer hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, which developed software for BitBank, and three individuals linked to Iranian financier Babak Zanjani to its sanctions list.
The U.S. Treasury described BitBank as one of the key crypto ventures controlled by Zanjani, who had previously been sanctioned over allegations that he created a network of companies used to launder money and evade restrictions on Iran.