Iran IRGC Crypto Exchange Network (OFAC Sectoral Sanctions)
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anchored·qzxJ7j…tNXkSummary
Between June and September 2026, the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a network of Iranian and Iran-linked cryptocurrency exchanges — including Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, Ramzinex, Shelbit Exchange, Aban Tether, and BitBank — for allegedly laundering funds on behalf of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and helping the Iranian regime evade sanctions. On August 24, 2026, as part of a campaign named 'Operation Economic Outcast,' OFAC issued a first-of-its-kind sectoral determination under Executive Order 13902 naming digital assets a sanctionable sector of Iran's economy, extending secondary-sanctions risk to any foreign person or entity operating in or supporting that sector, not just entities with direct terrorism links. Treasury and blockchain-analytics research describe IRGC-associated wallets as having received billions of dollars in cryptocurrency in 2025 alone.
Connected Entities
9 entities · 21 linked investigations- Amir Hossein Rad→mentioned with→Nobitex(80%)
- Aban Tether→mentioned with→Nobitex(70%)
- Nobitex / Wallex / Bitpin / Ramzinex→mentioned with→Nobitex(80%)
- Siavash Kayvanpour→mentioned with→Nobitex(80%)
- BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)→mentioned with→Nobitex / Wallex / Bitpin / Ramzinex(60%)
- BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)→mentioned with→Nobitex(60%)
- BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)→mentioned with→Aban Tether(75%)
- Iran IRGC Crypto Exchange Network (OFAC Sectoral Sanctions)→mentioned with→Nobitex(80%)
- Iran IRGC Crypto Exchange Network (OFAC Sectoral Sanctions)→mentioned with→BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)(70%)
- Iran IRGC Crypto Exchange Network (OFAC Sectoral Sanctions)→mentioned with→Nobitex / Wallex / Bitpin / Ramzinex(75%)
- + 19 more
Connected Through
8 shared actors · 21 investigationsDistinct actors this investigation shares with others — holders, traders, and named parties. Shared infrastructure (exchanges, pools) is excluded.
- □Nobitexorganizationalso inSiavash Kayvanpour·0OFAC Iran Central Bank Crypto Wallet Freeze (July 2026)·0Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Assets Sectoral Sanctions (August 2026)·0Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)·0OFAC Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Assets Sectoral Sanctions August 2026·0Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Asset Sanctions·0Iranian Crypto Exchanges OFAC Designation — Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, Ramzinex (June 2026)·0Shelbit Exchange·0Amir Hossein Rad·0Cryptomus / Xeltox Enterprises Ltd.·0Nobitex / Wallex / Bitpin / Ramzinex·0Aban Tether·0BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)·2Siavash Kayvanpour — OFAC-Designated Shelbit Founder·2Blessed Trust & Hexa Whale·2Nobitex·5Huobi / HTX·7Nobitex June 2025 Hack (Predatory Sparrow)·10Predatory Sparrow (Gonjeshke Darande)·22
- □Nobitex / Wallex / Bitpin / Ramzinexorganizationalso inNobitex / Wallex / Bitpin / Ramzinex·0Amir Hossein Rad·0Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Assets Sectoral Sanctions (August 2026)·0Iranian Crypto Exchanges OFAC Designation — Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, Ramzinex (June 2026)·0Aban Tether·0Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)·0Shelbit Exchange·0OFAC Iran Central Bank Crypto Wallet Freeze (July 2026)·0Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Asset Sanctions·0Siavash Kayvanpour·0Blessed Trust & Hexa Whale·2BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)·2Siavash Kayvanpour — OFAC-Designated Shelbit Founder·2Nobitex June 2025 Hack (Predatory Sparrow)·10Predatory Sparrow (Gonjeshke Darande)·22
- □Aban Tetherorganizationalso inAban Tether·0Babak Zanjani Network — Expanded OFAC Designations (July 2026)·0Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Asset Sanctions·0Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Assets Sectoral Sanctions (August 2026)·0OFAC Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Assets Sectoral Sanctions August 2026·0Shelbit Exchange·0Siavash Kayvanpour·0BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)·2Ivan Obukhov / Foscom FZE·2Siavash Kayvanpour — OFAC-Designated Shelbit Founder·2
- △Shelbit Exchangeexchange
- □Siavash Kayvanpourorganization
- □Amir Hossein Radorganization
- □Ivan Obukhov / Foscom FZEorganization
- △BitBank (Iranian Crypto Exchange)exchange
Timeline(5 events)
2024
Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, previously sentenced to death in Iran for embezzlement from the National Iranian Oil Company, reportedly had his sentence commuted, after which Treasury alleges he rebuilt a financial network later used to move cryptocurrency to the IRGC.
U.S. Department of the Treasury2 June 2026
OFAC designates Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex — described as Iran's four largest cryptocurrency exchanges — under Executive Orders 13224 and 13902.
Elliptic7 August 2026
OFAC sanctions Shelbit Exchange, Aban Tether, and Siavash Kayvanpour along with a network of associated front companies in Georgia, Poland, and the UAE, alleging billions of dollars laundered on behalf of the IRGC.
U.S. Department of the Treasury24 August 2026
Treasury launches 'Operation Economic Outcast'; OFAC issues a first-of-its-kind sectoral determination under Executive Order 13902 naming digital assets a sanctionable sector of Iran's economy, alongside aviation, gold, shipping, and technology, and designates nearly 60 additional entities, individuals, and vessels.
Sullivan & Cromwell LLPSeptember 2026
OFAC designates BitBank and its software developer, Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, along with three associates of financier Babak Zanjani, alleging hundreds of millions of dollars in bitcoin transfers to the IRGC between June and July 2026.
The BlockDecision Log
- hash: k3HmoB6HVUm3xvWJxdgsAByc8CWJx5gBM71kHyWmCMP
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (1 event). 14 of 14 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 9/18/2026, 11:24:26 PM
last updated: 9/19/2026, 2:43:36 AM
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