Operation Economic Outcast — Iran Digital Assets Sectoral Sanctions (August 2026)
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Summary
On August 24, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury launched Operation Economic Outcast, a whole-of-government sanctions campaign against Iran and its enablers, issuing the first-ever sectoral sanctions determination covering Iran's digital assets sector under Executive Order 13902. The action designated 78 individuals, entities, and vessels across 13 jurisdictions and structurally expanded secondary sanctions exposure so that any foreign person anywhere in the world who operates in or provides support to Iran's digital asset sector may now be designated — without OFAC needing to name them in advance. This page documents the regulatory action itself, the named designees with crypto relevance, and the compliance implications for global exchanges, OTC desks, and DeFi infrastructure.
Connected Entities
1 entitiesTimeline(9 events)
2020-01-10
Executive Order 13902 signed, authorizing sectoral sanctions against Iran's construction, mining, manufacturing, textiles, and financial services sectors.
U.S. Treasury / Federal Register2026-01-15
OFAC designated Zedcex and Zedxion, Iranian exchange-branded stablecoin infrastructure alleged to have IRGC exposure and approximately $1 billion in routed volume.
TRM Labs — Three Enforcement Layers in Five Months2026-04-01
OFAC froze approximately $344 million in USDT linked to Central Bank of Iran sovereign reserve addresses.
TRM Labs — Three Enforcement Layers in Five Months2026-06-02
Under Operation Economic Fury, OFAC designated Iran's four largest domestic crypto exchanges — Nobitex ($4.7B 2025 volume), Wallex ($1.45B), Bitpin ($821M), and Ramzinex ($739M) — plus four Nobitex leaders personally, under EO 13224 and EO 13902.
U.S. Treasury press release sb0519; Elliptic; Chainalysis2026-08-07
OFAC designated Shelbit (operator Siavash Kayvanpour, with entities in Georgia, Poland, and the UAE) and Aban Tether, an Iran-based exchange with alleged transaction links to Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex. Central Bank of Iran-linked addresses connected to approximately $475 million in frozen USDT as of this date.
U.S. Treasury press release sb0598; CoinDesk2026-08-18
DOJ filed a superseding indictment adding eight names to the Mabna Institute cyber case, bringing the total to 17 individuals charged with cyber intrusions on behalf of the IRGC since 2013, including 144 U.S. universities and 178 foreign universities.
TRM Labs; CryptoNews DOJ charges report2026-08-24
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Operation Economic Outcast. OFAC issued five EO 13902 sectoral determinations covering digital assets, aviation, gold, shipping, and technology. 78 individuals, entities, and vessels designated across 13 jurisdictions. Iran General Licences F and G suspended; General Licence BB issued for wind-down through September 8, 2026. 30 cryptocurrency addresses across Bitcoin, Ethereum, and TRON added to the SDN List.
U.S. Treasury press release sb0613; SanctionsLookup; TRM Labs2026-08-27
Federal Register published the sectoral determination issued pursuant to Executive Order 13902, formalizing the five-sector expansion effective August 24, 2026.
Federal Register document 2026-174872026-09-08
Wind-down deadline for transactions previously authorized under Iran General Licences F and G, per General Licence BB.
Trade Compliance Resource Hub; U.S. TreasuryDecision Log
- #1publish⛓ pending8/27/2026, 11:15:53 PMhash: 5J7mhZMokyiwaPLnni4p8yVbz6TD89GMu3zMfSf7PSw9
21 of 27 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-sonnet-4-6
generated: 8/27/2026, 11:15:43 PM
last updated: 8/28/2026, 4:56:10 AM
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