The U.S. Treasury on Friday sanctioned two Iranian crypto exchanges, Shelbit and Aban Tether, along with the operator of Shelbit, accusing them of moving millions of dollars for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Office of Foreign Assets Control also designated Siavash Kayvanpour, who ran Shelbit from Georgia. The action is the latest twist in Washington's maximum pressure campaign on Tehran.
Sanctions hit IRGC funding channels
Treasury said the IRGC's own crypto addresses sent more than $1 million into Shelbit, and more than $2 million flowed back to Guard-controlled wallets. Shelbit also laundered tens of millions for a Persian-language gambling network, according to the department. Aban Tether processed millions in transactions with platforms that OFAC already blocked, including Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent put it bluntly: "Whether in dollars, rials, or crypto, Treasury will hunt down and dismantle illicit financial networks."
Millions moved through Shelbit
The sanctions detail a web of transfers. Kayvanpour's own wallets sent more than $2 million to Nobitex, Iran's largest exchange, which OFAC blocked in June. Reuters reported that Shelbit routed $676 million to Binance, though the exchange has not been accused of wrongdoing. The designations come under Executive Order 13902, which targets firms operating in Iran's financial sector.
A network run from Georgia
Kayvanpour ran Shelbit from Georgia, Treasury said, and built front companies in Poland and the UAE to obscure the operation. The designations freeze any U.S. assets and bar Americans from dealing with him or the exchanges.
Stablecoin issuers expected to freeze wallets
The move extends the administration's pressure campaign under National Security Presidential Memorandum 2. Stablecoin issuers have moved quickly in past listings, freezing Iranian wallets within hours of OFAC designations. The two exchanges and Kayvanpour are now on the list, and the practical effect is that U.S.-based platforms and their partners can no longer touch them.
