The U.S. Treasury Department has launched Operation Economic Outcast, a campaign aimed at cutting Iran off from international financial networks and targeting cryptocurrency activity that American officials say helps evade sanctions and supports the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The operation was ordered by President Donald Trump as Washington seeks to disrupt the people, companies and intermediaries it believes help Iran sell oil, transfer money, bypass restrictions or finance organisations designated by the United States. Treasury officials said they had already identified facilitators, payment routes and other networks linked to Tehran.
“Today, in that same spirit, we are launching an economic onslaught against Iran’s financial connections around the globe,” Treasury said in its announcement.
The department said Iran faced two choices: continued isolation or a return to the international economy. It said reintegration would depend on the Iranian government changing behaviour that Washington considers a threat to the United States and its allies.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also warned foreign businesses and governments about continuing to deal with Iran. He said those that worked with the United States could gain from that relationship, while organisations that maintained connections with Tehran risked facing comparable isolation.
Operation Economic Outcast follows Bessent’s earlier description of an “Economic D-Day” against Iran, which he called the financial endgame of the American campaign. The new operation broadens the focus beyond Iran’s domestic institutions to overseas companies, payment systems and intermediaries accused of keeping its economy linked to global markets.
Cryptocurrency has been specifically included because Treasury says Iranian officials and associated groups are increasingly using digital assets to move money outside traditional banking systems.
The department alleges that Iran has used crypto to evade sanctions and process payments connected to the IRGC and government insiders. Treasury did not name individual wallets or exchanges, nor did it disclose transaction values in its announcement. However, it said the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) could sanction people involved in Iran’s cryptocurrency economy regardless of where they are based.
The launch of the campaign does not itself mean every person or company connected to the sector has been sanctioned. OFAC would still need to make a formal designation under the relevant U.S. authority. Once that happens, property subject to U.S. jurisdiction would generally be blocked.
American people and companies are normally prohibited from providing funds, services or other economic benefits to designated entities. OFAC rules may also apply to businesses that are at least 50% owned, directly or indirectly, by one or more blocked individuals or organisations, even if the subsidiary is not separately listed.
The new policy could require exchanges, custodians, stablecoin issuers and payment providers to strengthen wallet-screening systems and customer checks. Companies outside the United States could also face sanctions if they knowingly facilitate certain transactions involving blocked Iranian parties.
Treasury said the campaign would also cover technology, gold, aviation and shipping. According to the department, Iran has used international networks in those industries to sell oil, receive payments and acquire goods despite American restrictions.
Recent action against Iran-linked crypto networks
Operation Economic Outcast comes after a series of U.S. measures against exchanges, wallets and companies linked to Iran during 2026.
On 7 August, OFAC sanctioned Shelbit, Aban Tether and Iranian national Siavash Kayvanpour. It alleged that they had helped move funds connected to sanctioned parties. Ascrypto.news previously reported that Treasury claimed addresses linked to the IRGC sent more than $1m in cryptocurrency to Shelbit, while wallets associated with the exchange allegedly transferred more than $2m to IRGC-controlled addresses.
Treasury also alleged that wallets linked to Kayvanpour sent more than $2m to Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. Shelbit’s former management denied knowingly taking part in sanctions evasion, terrorism financing or money laundering, and said the company had stopped accepting new business in December 2025.
OFAC separately accused Aban Tether of processing funds involving Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin and Ramzinex. Those four Iranian exchanges were sanctioned in June after U.S. authorities alleged they had helped restricted entities access the digital asset market.
In July, U.S. authorities froze $131m in USDT held across four Tron wallets that Treasury linked to Iran’s central bank. The department confirmed the freeze but did not publicly set out how the money had been acquired or what transactions the holders intended to make.
An earlier action in April led to approximately $344m in USDT being frozen across two Tron addresses that American officials connected to Iranian networks. Tether enforced the restriction through controls built into the stablecoin, leaving the funds immobile without changing the Tron blockchain itself.
Centralised stablecoins give their issuers a direct mechanism for freezing assets held at identified addresses. Bitcoin does not have the same issuer-controlled feature, meaning that restricting BTC generally requires control of private keys, assistance from a custodian or action against an exchange account under legal restrictions.
Treasury has also targeted alleged Iranian use of Bitcoin outside the exchange sector. On 29 July, OFAC sanctioned two insurers after accusing HormuzSafe Marine Services Authority of accepting Bitcoin and other digital assets to circumvent restrictions and generate revenue for the IRGC.
The public designation did not provide wallet addresses, transaction hashes or payment totals to support the allegation. It also did not announce a seizure, criminal charge or court ruling against customers who may have used the company.
Bitcoin showed little immediate reaction to the Treasury announcement, trading at about $79,000 after reaching an intraday high close to $80,000. That level remains a psychological barrier following the cryptocurrency’s recovery from prices below $65,000 earlier in August.
Before the Treasury announcement, Bitcoin had been under pressure after President Trump intensified a trade dispute with Canada. Trump threatened 50% tariffs on Canadian-made vehicles, car parts and steel from 1 January 2027, while Canada said it would respond with tariffs on U.S. goods.
Currency markets responded more clearly to the two developments. Reuters reported that the U.S. dollar index increased by 0.17% to 98.99 after the Iran measures and the Canadian tariff announcement, while the Canadian dollar fell 0.61% against the U.S. dollar. Bitcoin later recovered to about $78,993, up roughly 2.1% during the session.
