The U.S. Treasury on Friday sanctioned an unlicensed cryptocurrency exchange that operated in several countries and said that the exchange moved millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other entities linked to the Iranian government.

The move came after a Reuters investigation on July 31, which identified the Dubai-based exchange “Shellbit” as the center of a $4 billion network aimed at circumventing Iran sanctions. Based on the investigation, Shellbit moved cryptocurrency for Iran’s central bank, “a large illegal online gambling network,” and addresses that the Israeli government says are linked to the IRGC.

The U.S. Treasury also sanctioned Saevoosh/Siavash Keyvanpour, the Iranian founder of Shellbit, and a network of companies affiliated with him for allegedly providing material support to the IRGC and the “Nobitex” exchange. The U.S. previously sanctioned Nobitex, Iran’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, on June 2.

Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury secretary, said that Washington will identify and shut down what he called “illegal financial networks” that, according to him, help the survival of Iran’s government.

📷 Getty