US sanctions Iranian exchange BitBank over Bitcoin transfers to IRGC

The US Treasury has sanctioned the Tehran-based cryptocurrency exchange BitBank for facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin transfers to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The exchange, reportedly controlled by financier Babak Zanjani, was also used by the Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority to collect maritime passage fees. The sanctions extend to Pishtaz Simorgh Electronic Trade Company, Dot One Value Creation Group, and three executives. These designations, part of Operation Economic Outcast, impose secondary sanctions that could cut off offshore exchanges or banks processing BitBank-related flows from the US financial system.