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The US Treasury has taken the unprecedented step of blacklisting two UK-registered cryptocurrency exchanges for processing funds linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
This action marks the first time that entire digital asset platforms have been sanctioned under Iran’s financial measures.
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Historic step: Sanctions imposed on entire digital currency platforms due to their links with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard
On January 30, 2026, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on Zedcex Exchange Ltd. and Zedxion Exchange Ltd. Pointing out its role in facilitating transactions worth about $1 billion related to the Revolutionary Guard Corps, mainly through Tether (USDT). tron network.
Since its registration in August 2022, Zedcex alone has handled more than $94 billion in total transactions, highlighting the scale of operations of this exchange.
Reports indicate that the exchanges are linked to Babak Morteza Zanjiani, an Iranian businessman who was previously convicted of embezzling billions from the National Iranian Oil Company.
US Treasury officials allege that after Zanjiani’s death sentence was commuted in 2024, he resumed his financial activities to launder money for the Iranian regime and support projects related to the Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Treasury Secretary Scott Besent said the Treasury will continue to target Iranian networks and corrupt elites enriching themselves at the expense of the Iranian people. This includes the regime’s attempts to leverage digital assets to evade sanctions and finance cybercriminal operations.
Penalties are part of A wider crackdown on Iranian officials And the networks accused of violently suppressing the demonstrators. Prominent figures targeted include Interior Minister Iskander Momeni Kalajari and a number of Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders.
Independent estimates put the death toll among protesters in recent campaigns at 30,000. Authorities are reported to be using mass burials and secret medical networks to hide the number of victims.
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Using Cryptocurrencies to Circumvent Sanctions: US Targets Entire State-Backed Trading Platforms and Networks
Bullying procedures US Department of the Treasury Highlight the growing use of cryptocurrency as a tool to circumvent sanctions and finance illicit operations.
More than 50% of the transaction volume of these platforms in 2023 was linked to entities affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, the Washington Post reported, citing blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs. This shows how state-backed actors are increasingly leveraging digital assets.
In addition to freezing all assets held by sanctioned parties in the United States, these measures prohibit Americans from doing business with ZCX, ZDXion, Zanjani and other designated persons or entities.
The civil and criminal penalties for violations reflect the severity of the penalty, which underscores the commitment of the United States to prevent the financing of illicit activities in the digital asset space.
These sanctions also signal a historic shift in enforcement strategy. US authorities show that instead of targeting individual wallets or transactions, they are now sanctioning entire cryptocurrency platforms to disrupt systemic financial networks that are used to evade sanctions and finance terrorism.
With more than 875 Iranian people, ships and aircraft already subject to sanctions in 2025 for destabilizing activities, OFAC’s latest move illustrates the complexity of the growing relationship between digital assets and global security policy.
As cryptocurrencies continue to integrate into the international financial system, the authorities are expanding their scope, emphasizing that platforms operating outside traditional jurisdictions can no longer assume that they are immune when they facilitate illicit flows to sanctioned countries or entities.
