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British authorities have frozen a London townhouse purchased for £53 million after official property records identified a connection between the property's registered owner and a person subject to UK financial sanctions. The property, located in Belgravia, was purchased in October 2023 by Zhao Chen, who is not herself designated under UK sanctions. The restriction was placed on the property in August 2026. Land Registry documents show that Zhao Chen acquired the property for

The United States has imposed sanctions on Iranian cryptocurrency exchange BitBank, its software developer and three individuals linked to Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, alleging that the network facilitated the movement of hundreds of millions of dollars in Bitcoin to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The designations were announced by the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on 17 September 2026 under Executive Order 13902, w

The United States has imposed sanctions on a Turkish investment bank and two of its subsidiaries, accusing the institutions of helping Iran maintain access to international financial channels and facilitating transactions connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force (IRGC-QF). The action, announced on September 4, represents a significant escalation in Washington’s campaign to restrict Iran’s access to the global financial system. The measures target Istanbu

Citibank's London branch has been fined £4.73 million by the UK's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) after a regulatory investigation identified widespread failures that allowed hundreds of transactions involving sanctioned Russian entities and individuals to pass through the bank. The penalty relates to 970 payments with a combined value of approximately £19.7 million. Most of the breaches occurred between February and November 2022, following the introducti

Finance ministers and central bank governors from the world's largest economies have gathered in Asheville, North Carolina, for discussions dominated by geopolitical tensions, trade disputes and efforts to address mounting global debt. The two-day meeting is taking place under the US presidency of the G20 finance track, with Washington seeking international backing for its campaign to increase economic pressure on Iran. At the same time, disagreements over US tariffs have com

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced a new round of sanctions targeting individuals, companies and networks connected with Russia, reinforcing Washington’s continued use of financial restrictions to limit activities considered to support the Russian state and its strategic interests. The measures form part of the broader U.S. sanctions framework directed at Russia and underline the continuing importance of sanctions scree

Ukraine has expanded its autonomous sanctions regime against Russia, adding 87 individuals and 54 entities to its sanctions list in a coordinated series of measures approved by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The measures were introduced through four presidential decrees and target individuals and companies connected with Russia and activities considered to support or facilitate Russian interests. The latest additions bring a further layer of pressure to Ukraine's expanding sa

Austria has uncovered a sanctions-evasion operation in which a Vienna-based company allegedly supplied specialised industrial equipment to businesses connected to Russia's military-industrial sector. The investigation has resulted in arrests and the seizure of machinery and tools, while authorities continue examining a complex network of companies allegedly used to conceal the ultimate destination and end users of the exported goods. The investigation centres on a company bas

The United Kingdom has expanded its sanctions regime against Russia, targeting banks, financial businesses, vessels and companies connected to the country's energy sector and sanctions-evasion networks. The latest measures are intended to restrict Russia's ability to generate revenue from oil exports and access international financial services, while increasing pressure on the networks used to circumvent restrictions imposed since the invasion of Ukraine. The measures include

The United States has imposed a new round of counterterrorism sanctions targeting individuals and entities accused of facilitating financial support for Hamas through a network allegedly linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. The measures, announced by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), are intended to disrupt fundraising operations, charitable front organisations and financial intermediaries that U.S. authorities allege have channelled

The fight over Russia’s frozen central bank assets has moved deeper into the courts, turning one of Europe’s most important sanctions tools into a complex legal battlefield. Euroclear, the Belgian-based financial market infrastructure group holding a major share of immobilised Russian sovereign assets, has sued Russia’s central bank in Belgium. The aim is to block enforcement of a Moscow arbitration court ruling ordering Euroclear to pay around €220 billion in damages linked

The Financial Action Task Force has issued a new warning on the misuse of social media, instant messaging applications and streaming platforms for terrorist financing, signalling that digital platforms are no longer only a propaganda or recruitment concern. They are increasingly part of the financial infrastructure used to raise, move and obscure funds. The new FATF publication, issued on 26 June 2026, focuses on how social media, messaging applications and streaming platform

The European Union has extended its economic sanctions against Russia for another year, confirming that restrictions linked to the war in Ukraine are no longer being treated as short-term emergency measures but as a long-term part of Europe’s regulatory and commercial environment. On 25 June 2026, the Council of the European Union renewed the restrictive measures imposed in response to Russia’s continuing actions destabilising Ukraine. The measures will now remain in force un

Europol and INTERPOL have reinforced their collaboration in response to growing global criminal threats, marking a step that highlights how organised crime, cybercrime, fraud, and illicit financial activity are increasingly operating on an international scale. The renewed cooperation framework, announced on 22 June 2026, is designed to enhance coordination between two of the most significant global law-enforcement cooperation institutions. Europol continues to support Eur

The Financial Action Task Force is moving global anti-money laundering expectations into a more operational phase, with recent updates showing a clear shift away from purely formal compliance and towards practical effectiveness, stronger payment transparency, sanctions implementation and better detection of cross-border financial crime. The latest developments follow the FATF Plenary held between 17 and 19 June 2026, where members approved a series of initiatives dealing wi

The Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled that a person’s inclusion on a United States sanctions list is not, by itself, sufficient grounds for an EU bank to refuse to open a basic payment account. The judgment, delivered on 11 June 2026 in Case C-81/24, Jenec, is an important clarification for banks, payment institutions and compliance teams operating in the European Union. It confirms that non-EU sanctions listings, including those maintained by the US Office o

The United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has unveiled a significant new sanctions action aimed at disrupting financial networks allegedly supporting Hezbollah through a web of politically connected individuals and multinational commercial enterprises operating across the Middle East. The measures are designed to freeze assets subject to U.S. jurisdiction, sever access to the international financial system, and impede the ability o

The seizure of the shadow fleet oil tanker MV Smyrtos in the English Channel by British law enforcement and military personnel has resulted in criminal charges carrying a maximum penalty of ten years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both, for the vessel’s commander. Following an extensive investigation led by the National Crime Agency, the Crown Prosecution Service authorized charges against Indian national Ajay Pant on June 15, 2026. The case represents a significant enforcement ac

A British teenager has been formally sanctioned and subjected to an entry ban by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs after leading an extensive open-source investigation that uncovered a sophisticated cryptocurrency laundering network allegedly used to facilitate illicit financial flows for sanctioned states. The research has attracted significant attention from global law enforcement agencies, financial intelligence units, and compliance authorities, all of which are n

The United States government has intensified its counterterrorism enforcement efforts by freezing the financial infrastructure connected to transnational procurement networks allegedly supporting a Hamas-backed flotilla attempting to reach Gaza. Through coordinated sanctions enforcement, the Office of Foreign Assets Control implemented broad asset freezes targeting international organizers and political operatives associated with maritime delivery initiatives and religious co