On June 2, 2026, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Iranian crypto exchanges Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex. Authorities cited their alleged ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and illicit financial activities. Nobitex, which handled over 50% of Iran’s digital asset inflows in 2025, and its executive Amir Hossein Rad were specifically targeted.
In July 2026, OFAC took action against several crypto wallets linked to Iran, prompting Tether to freeze over $131 million in associated Tron addresses. Following these measures, the US expanded its list in August 2026 to include Shelbit Exchange and Aban Tether due to their ongoing connections with the previously blacklisted platforms.
These sanctions are part of the broader US Treasury initiatives known as Operation Economic Outcast and the Economic Fury campaign. The measures prohibit US persons from transacting with the designated entities and impose secondary sanctions risks on foreign financial institutions that facilitate such operations.
The Treasury clarified that the Japan-based exchange Bitbank is not on any US sanctions lists and maintains full compliance with OFAC regulations. Meanwhile, users of the sanctioned Iranian platforms face frozen assets with limited recovery options, while the broader market experiences liquidity disruptions due to the asset freezes.
