US Treasury probes crypto exchanges for alleged Iran sanctions evasion

The U.S. Treasury Department is investigating cryptocurrency exchanges for allegedly helping Iran evade sanctions, TRM Labs reported. According to CoinDesk, Ari Redbord, head of global policy at TRM Labs, said the Treasury is shifting its investigative focus from individual wallets to cryptocurrency infrastructure. He explained that the issue is not merely that sanctioned individuals use crypto, but that this sanctions evasion activity appears to be concentrated within exchange systems. One case identified by TRM Labs involves Zedcex, an exchange that seems to operate on infrastructure controlled by Iran's elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Zedcex is reported to have processed approximately $1 billion in funds linked to the IRGC. This amount constituted about 56% of the exchange's total trading volume, with the proportion peaking at 87% in 2024.