Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)
Summary
On July 24, 2026, the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated four individuals and nine entities comprising the commercial support structure behind Iranian financier Babak Zanjani's sanctions evasion network. The action extended a January 30, 2026 designation of Zanjani and his two UK-registered digital asset exchanges, Zedcex Exchange Limited and Zedxion Exchange Limited, which had processed over $94 billion in transactions since 2022 and transferred funds to IRGC-linked and Houthi-affiliated wallets. The July 2026 expansion targeted Istanbul- and Dubai-based fintechs, Iranian conglomerate subsidiaries, and family members of Zanjani who provided material, technological, and financial support to the exchanges.
Connected Entities
8 entities · 10 linked investigations- TNuA5CQ6LB4jTHoNrjEeQZJmcmhQuHMbQ7→mentioned with→Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)(50%)
- TASWbk6X1wiTku5TMmMQYqYFvshVEtfJy8→mentioned with→Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)(50%)
- TCA9vmjsYw9MtPKEwRBtGhKFRfr4CLxJAv→mentioned with→Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)(50%)
- + 9 more
Connected Through
1 shared actor · 1 investigationDistinct actors this investigation shares with others — holders, traders, and named parties. Shared infrastructure (exchanges, pools) is excluded.
- ◇TLvuvp…UroEwallet
Timeline(12 events)
2013-01-01
Babak Zanjani arrested in Iran for allegedly withholding $2.7 billion owed to the Ministry of Petroleum from oil sanctions evasion activities.
Wikipedia / News archives2016-03-06
Iranian court sentences Zanjani to death for embezzlement and 'spreading corruption on earth' linked to funds taken from the National Iranian Oil Company.
HuffPost / Reuters2022-01-01
Zedcex Exchange Limited and Zedxion Exchange Limited registered in the United Kingdom; Babak Zanjani listed as controller under alias 'Babak Morteza' in UK filings.
OCCRP investigation2022-03-01
Zedcex and Zedxion release marketing video featuring 'Elizabeth Newman' as executive director, a fabricated persona using stock footage of a model.
OCCRP investigation2022-05-24
Zedpay Finansal Sistem Ve Hizmetleri Anonim Sirketi registered in Turkey as a computer programming business; later integrated as payment processor for Zedxion.
Turkish Minute / US Treasury2022-08-01
Babak Zanjani removed from Zedcex/Zedxion UK company records as listed controller, replaced by the fictitious 'Elizabeth Newman' persona.
OCCRP investigation2024-04-30
Iran commutes Zanjani's death sentence to 20 years of imprisonment following the alleged repatriation of approximately $2.1 billion in assets.
Kharon / News archives2025-04-01
Dot One Rail Company announces $800 million contract with Islamic Republic of Iran Railways; Zanjani promotes the deal on social media.
U.S. Treasury press release2025-06-01
Tether blacklists one of the TRON wallet addresses subsequently designated by OFAC in connection with Zedcex.
Elliptic analysis2026-01-30
OFAC designates Babak Zanjani, Zedcex Exchange Limited, and Zedxion Exchange Limited; seven TRON wallet addresses included. First-ever OFAC designation of IRGC-linked digital asset exchanges.
U.S. Department of the Treasury2026-02-27
OCCRP publishes 'The Cat and the Stock-Footage CEO' investigation exposing the fake Elizabeth Newman CEO persona and Solmaz Bani's operational ties via shared social media content.
OCCRP2026-07-24
OFAC designates four individuals (Mehdi Rezazadeh, Sukhrob Oimakhmadov, Bahareh Morteza Zanjani, Solmaz Bani) and nine entities including Dot One Value Creation Group, DotOne Gold Company, DotOne Rail Company, DotOne Barter Company, DotOne Airlines Company, DotOne Trip, Zedpay, Zedx DMCC, and BZ Diamond FZCO under Executive Order 13902.
U.S. Department of the TreasuryDecision Log
- #1publish⛓ pending7/29/2026, 5:27:13 PMhash: Cc4XA4MifTxPtcuedmUeziLYWnrD4iE5e4HWKp3QYNkz
19 of 23 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-sonnet-4-6
generated: 7/29/2026, 5:26:58 PM
last updated: 7/29/2026, 8:29:08 PM
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