US Imposes Sanctions on Canadian Money Exchange Companies for Ties to Iran

The U.S. Department of the Treasury has imposed financial sanctions on eight Canadian currency exchange companies, which it claims conducted business with sanctioned Iranian entities. These companies facilitated the exchange of Iranian rials and other currencies into digital assets, enabling international transactions. The sanctions aim to isolate these companies from the dollar financial system and are part of a series of measures against firms operating outside the U.S.

According to the department, these businesses conducted transactions with sanctioned Iranian digital exchanges, as well as digital asset addresses linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Scott Bessent, the Secretary of the Treasury, stated: "Canada cannot be a safe haven for illicit financial intermediaries providing sanctions evasion services to the Iranian regime and its proxies." Bessent added that the department will "pursue and dismantle the Iranian regime's financial channels worldwide." Alongside the sanctions, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced plans to increase economic pressure on Iran, particularly on financial networks that fund the regime's activities, both in dollars and digital assets.

The second action taken on Friday relates to a rewards program for information on Iran's nuclear program. Under this program, the U.S. offers up to $20 million and possible relocation for information on the location of Iranian nuclear facilities, their equipment, and personnel. This offer is linked to Iran's insufficient compliance with its obligations to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which expresses concern over the loss of "continuity of knowledge" regarding the production of highly enriched uranium and other components, such as centrifuges. As the Treasury Department emphasizes, such measures are a continuation of the campaign to stop the Iranian regime's exploitation of digital assets to finance terrorism and other illicit activities.