US Sanctions Iranian $6bn Crypto “Exchange” Shelbit

The US authorities have sanctioned an Iranian firm accused of moving over $6bn in illegal blockchain flows over the past two years.

Shelbit was a crypto exchange in name only, argued blockchain analytics company TRM Labs, in a blog published on August 7.

The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) also sanctioned founder Siavash Kayvanpour, and a network of affiliated entities across the UAE, Poland and Georgia, as well as separate Iran-based exchange Aban Tether.

Shelbit was cited for money flows to wallets controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), with the unlicensed Dubai-registered cryptocurrency exchange enabling some $6.3bn between May 2024 and March 2026.

In a statement issued by the US Department of the Treasury, Secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent said, “The Iranian regime’s reliance on digital assets and shadow banking networks is further evidence that Economic Fury is working. We will continue to increase the economic pressure. Whether in dollars, rials, or crypto, Treasury will hunt down and dismantle the illicit financial networks that keep the regime afloat.”

TRM Labs explained that Shelbit's wallets held virtually no balances.