US Treasury Cracks Down on Iran's Crypto Sector with New Sanctions Authority

The US Treasury Department has granted itself standing legal authority over Iran's crypto sector, joining technology, gold, aviation, and shipping as newly sanctionable sectors under Executive Order 13902.

This move, which took effect on August 24, gives the Treasury the power to sanction anyone operating in these sectors without having to build a case against each specific company or person.

The authority was used since 2020 to name whole industries rather than individual violators, and now anyone found operating in a named sector becomes exposed to sanctions directly.

This action arrived with a notable figure: more than $100 million in cryptocurrency payments tied to Iranian oil sales since 2023, reportedly made by shipping broker Ivan Obukhov on behalf of the Revolutionary Guard's Qods Force branch.