US Treasury Expands Sanctions Against Zanjani Network

The US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has expanded its sanctions against the network associated with Iranian businessman Babak Zanjani. On July 24, OFAC designated individuals and entities linked to Zanjani and the Dot One commercial network.

These designations target a broader ecosystem that includes gold production, digital assets, and transportation, in addition to cryptocurrency exchanges Zedcex Exchange Ltd (Zedcex) and Zedxion Exchange Ltd (Zedxion).

The expansion of sanctions reflects an increasing understanding of how illicit financial networks operate. Rather than relying on a single exchange or institution, modern evasion networks distribute risk across numerous seemingly independent companies.

TRM Labs investigated the Zedcex ecosystem following OFAC's designation of Zedcex Exchange Ltd and Zedxion Exchange Ltd. The investigation found that these exchanges processed tens of billions of dollars in cryptocurrency transactions while serving as key financial infrastructure within Iran's digital asset ecosystem.