US Imposes Sanctions on Iran's Bitbank for Funding IRGC Activities
WHO:
CoinDesk - The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has designated BitBank and Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, the software firm that built it.
Techmeme - The US Treasury imposed sanctions on the Iranian crypto exchange BitBank.
Cointelegraph - The Iranian exchange BitBank is involved in processing payments for the IRGC.
WHAT:
CoinDesk - Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated, "Today's designations of Iranian digital asset infrastructure make perfectly clear that efforts to finance the Iranian regime using cryptocurrencies are not beyond OFAC's reach."
Techmeme - The US Treasury stated that BitBank sent hundreds of millions of dollars to the IRGC.
Cointelegraph - BitBank helped move hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin to the IRGC and processed payments for Iran’s Strait of Hormuz maritime scheme.
WHERE:
Techmeme - The Strait of Hormuz is the location where Iran has been charging tankers for passage.
WHEN:
Techmeme - Iran has charged tankers between $1 million and $2 million to cross the Strait of Hormuz this year.
WHY:
Techmeme - The sanctions were imposed due to BitBank's financial support of the IRGC's activities.
HOW:
CoinDesk - Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority, sanctioned on July 29, began using BitBank to pass collected funds on to regime entities.
Cointelegraph - BitBank processed payments received through Iran’s maritime scheme in the Strait of Hormuz.
(UPDATED September 18, 2026 13:04 UTC)
The Office of Foreign Assets Control has designated BitBank and Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, which developed the software for BitBank. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized that the recent designations of Iranian digital asset infrastructure demonstrate that financing the Iranian regime through cryptocurrencies is within OFAC's enforcement capabilities. Additionally, Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority, which was sanctioned on July 29, has been using BitBank to transfer collected funds to regime entities.
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(UPDATED September 18, 2026 11:59 UTC)
The US Treasury has imposed sanctions on the Iranian crypto exchange BitBank for its involvement in processing payments for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC. According to reports, BitBank has facilitated the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin to the IRGC and has been involved in Iran's maritime scheme in the Strait of Hormuz, where the country has charged tankers between $1 million and $2 million for passage this year. The sanctions were enacted in response to BitBank's financial support of the IRGC's activities.