Iranian Crypto Exchange BitBank Lands on US Treasury’s Sanctions List

US Treasury has expanded its Iran crackdown by targeting BitBank, its developer, and executives linked to financier Babak Zanjani.

The US Treasury Department has sanctioned cryptocurrency exchange BitBank as part of a wider crackdown on Iran’s financial networks.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said BitBank is controlled by Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, who is already under US sanctions. The agency accused the exchange of helping move funds linked to Iran.

BitBank Targeted

According to OFAC, BitBank was used to transfer payments received by the Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority, an entity already designated by the US. The agency said the transfers began in June. Treasury officials also alleged that BitBank was involved in moving hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Bitcoin to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, between June and July.

The action also targets BitBank’s developer, Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, along with three executives linked to Zanjani: Hossein Ali Zaker Hossein, Mohammad Mahdi Zaker Hossein, and Seyed Adel Heidari. OFAC described the group as part of Zanjani’s digital asset network.