US Treasury cuts off MEXC over alleged $16B in illicit transactions

The US Department of Treasury on Friday issued an order to cut cryptocurrency exchange MEXC Global off from the US’ financial system after accusing it of facilitating at least $16 billion in transactions linked to sanctions evasion, cybercrime and other illicit activity.

The Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) asserted that MEXC handled transactions involving sanctioned groups in Iran, Russia and North Korea between May 2021 and May 2026. This included around $1.5 billion in transactions linked to Russian sanctions evasion, according to the official press release.

The order effectively bans US financial institutions from processing money transfers involving MEXC and will take effect 30 days after it is published in the Federal Register. 

“Financial institutions cannot have it both ways: Either you support the Iranian regime, or you have access to the U.S. financial system,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “Treasury will continue to sever the Iranian regime’s economic lifelines and thwart its desperate attempts to circumvent U.S. sanctions using digital assets.”

The action is part of Operation Economic Outcast, a US Treasury campaign launched in August with aims to cut off financial entites that help Iran evade sanctions.

According to DefiLlama, the exchange held about $4.48 billion in total assets as of Friday. Cointelegraph contacted MEXC for comment but had not received a response by publication.

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