U.S. Sanctions Crypto Exchanges Linked to Iran

Treasury targets digital asset platforms linked to the Iranian regime. The first-ever crypto exchange sanctions indicate intensification of the Iran pressure campaign. 

The Treasury of the U.S. disrupted crypto exchanges linked to the Revolutionary Guard of Iran. On Friday, officials declared sanctions against Zedcex Exchange and Zedxion Exchange.  

The Treasury Department press release notes this is the first time that OFAC has designated digital asset exchanges to operate in the Iranian financial sector. By 2022, the platforms had over 94 billion transactions. Several wallet addresses belonging to the IRGC were funded via these transactions.  

Scott Bessent, the Treasury Secretary, criticized the financial activities of the regime. Bessent said the regime is frantically transferring funds stolen from the families of Iranians into banks in other parts of the world. He made a promise of further action on networks that are using digital assets to avoid sanctions.  

Shadow Banking Network Exposed

Both cryptocurrency exchanges are allegedly sponsored by Babak Morteza Zanjani. He was sentenced to death by the Iranian courts in 2016 for embezzling billions of dollars from the National Oil Company of Iran. His sentence was reduced in 2024.

Zanjani now finances big infrastructure projects to help the IRGC. In April 2025, he offered financial support to one of the biggest investments in Iranian railways. The exchanges registered in the UK are directly related to his operations.  

Zedxion listed Zanjani as a director when it was registered in May 2021. The two platforms handled wallet transactions associated with Revolutionary Guard entities. The path of funds was followed by the treasury officials with the help of blockchain addresses.  

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Security Forces Face Sanctions

OFAC has placed Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni Kalagari under the supervision of violent crackdowns. His police killed thousands of non-violent demonstrators. Mass arrests and forced disappearances have been carried out by security services.  

Five IRGC officers were subject to sanctions due to violence in the province. In the province of Gilan, forces led by Hamid Damghani killed hundreds of demonstrators. Live ammunition was used by security forces on unarmed demonstrators in the area.

Ghorban, the provincial commander of Tehran, was in charge of the protesters’ execution. Bodies were kept on the streets because the local morgues were overcrowded. Dead remains were stacked in shipping containers and pickup trucks by IRGC soldiers.

The 2025 sanctions campaign has already affected more than 875 individuals, ships, and aircraft. The treasury is still attacking the money-laundering and shadow banking networks in Iran. Blocking is applied to all property of specified individuals in the U.S. jurisdiction.  

Financial institutions are subject to exposure to sanctioned transactions with blocked entities. OFAC imposes the violations on a strict liability case. The agency seeks to instill behavioral change instead of penalizing.