Treasury Cracks Down On Billion-Dollar Iranian Crypto Laundering Ring
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced sanctions Friday against cryptocurrency exchanges and business entities involved in moving funds for the Iranian government and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Federal officials said the action focuses on two major digital asset exchanges and a network of front companies used to move money internationally, circumvent economic restrictions, and obscure the origin of illicit funds.
According to Treasury officials, Iranian entities utilized lightly regulated digital currency platforms alongside an online gambling operation to process large transaction volumes. The revenue generated through these channels ultimately benefited the IRGC, a designated foreign terrorist organization, as well as individuals connected to the Iranian regime.
“The Iranian regime’s reliance on digital assets and shadow banking networks is further evidence that Economic Fury is working,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. “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.”
The enforcement action names Siavash Kayvanpour, an Iranian-born national holding citizenship in Dominica and Afghanistan, as the head of a multi-jurisdictional network supporting these activities. Officials stated Kayvanpour operated the Georgia-based Shelbit Exchange through his company, SHPS Shelbit.
According to Treasury data, wallet addresses linked to the IRGC sent over $1 million in digital assets to Shelbit Exchange addresses, while more than $2 million flowed in the opposite direction. Kayvanpour’s personal or controlled addresses also transferred over $2 million to Nobitex, a previously designated Iranian exchange.
Treasury documents state that Shelbit also provided financial services to a Persian-language gambling network operated by two Iranian influencers living abroad, processing tens of millions of dollars in digital assets. While the individuals were convicted of illegal gambling in Iran in 2023, their platforms maintained access to Iran’s central bank-regulated online payment system.
Kayvanpour was designated under Executive Order 13224 for providing support to the IRGC and Nobitex. OFAC also sanctioned associated entities controlled by Kayvanpour, including UAE-based Crypto Home DMCC, NFT Home DMCC, and Shelbit General Trading LLC, Poland-based Shelbit Technologies Ltd, and Georgia-based SHPS Shelbit.
The UAE’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority previously issued enforcement actions against Shelbit General Trading in January 2025 and July 2026, as well as Crypto Home in January 2025.
Additionally, OFAC designated Aban Tether, another Iran-based exchange, under Executive Order 13902 for operating within the Iranian financial sector. Officials noted Aban Tether processed millions in transactions with previously sanctioned Iranian exchanges, including Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex.
The action was coordinated alongside Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. Concurrently, the State Department’s Rewards for Justice program announced a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the disruption of IRGC financial mechanisms.
As a result of the designations, all U.S. property and assets owned by the named individuals or entities are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from conducting transactions with them. Financial institutions and foreign persons engaging with the designated entities also face potential secondary sanctions or enforcement penalties.
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