The US Treasury today sanctioned four individuals and nine entities tied to Iranian sanctions evader Babak Zanjani, expanding a crackdown on crypto exchanges that collectively processed $94 billion. The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said the network used digital assets to move money on behalf of sanctioned Iranian entities.
Who's on the list
The Treasury named four people and nine companies linked to Zanjani's sanctions evasion network. Zanjani himself has been under US and EU sanctions since 2012 for helping Iran sell oil and evade restrictions. The new designations freeze any US assets of those targeted and bar Americans from dealing with them.
The $94 billion crypto pipeline
The sanctions expand a broader crackdown on crypto exchanges that processed $94 billion. That figure — the total volume handled by the targeted platforms — underscores the scale of the alleged evasion. The Treasury did not name the specific exchanges in today's announcement, but the action signals that regulators are tracking how digital assets flow through intermediaries to sanctioned actors.
What happens now
The newly sanctioned individuals and entities can challenge the designations, but the practical effect is immediate: any US-based accounts or assets are frozen. The Treasury said it will continue to target networks that use crypto to bypass sanctions. For Zanjani, already serving a prison sentence in Iran on separate corruption charges, the new US action adds another layer of financial isolation.
