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The European Union has confirmed that Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Ukraine have aligned themselves with recent amendments to four EU sanctions regimes. The developments concern restrictive measures relating to chemical weapons, the Transnistrian region of Moldova, North Korea and ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaeda. The announcements, issued by the EU on 10 November 2026, form part of its continuing efforts to coordinate sanctions policy wi

European Union ambassadors have reached a preliminary agreement to impose new sanctions on 145 individuals and entities connected to Russia, in a significant expansion of the bloc’s efforts to restrict Moscow’s financial activities, disrupt its oil transportation networks and counter alleged disinformation and hybrid operations. The agreement, reached on Wednesday following discussions among representatives of the EU’s 27 member states, covers targets linked to Russia’s fin

The European Union has removed three individuals from its sanctions list targeting persons associated with ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida, following corresponding delisting decisions by the United Nations Security Council. The measure was implemented through Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/2490 of 3 November 2026, which amends Regulation (EC) No 881/2002 for the 364th time. The individuals removed from the list are Shafi Sultan Mohammed Sultan Al-Ajmi, Bassam Ahmad A

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has removed Bulgaria, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Monaco from its list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring, following confirmation that the four countries have made sufficient progress in addressing strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) frameworks. The decisions were announced following the FATF Plenary held in Paris from 28 to 30 October

The dispute concerned a payment instruction issued in July 2022 by Damir Garifullin, who asked Ural Bank for Reconstruction and Development (UBRiR), a Russian bank, to transfer US$1,345 from his Russian account to an account held with Trustbank in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. To execute the payment, UBRiR routed the funds through its US dollar correspondent account at The Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon). BNY Mellon subsequently transferred the money to Standard Chartered Bank i

The UK government has updated its guidance on sanctions restricting the provision of professional and business services to Russia, clarifying the scope of consultancy and public relations activities and publishing detailed guidance on construction services. The changes, issued on 27 October 2026, provide businesses with further direction on identifying prohibited services, assessing indirect recipients and determining when an exception or licence may apply. The updated materi

A7, a Russian payment company backed by the Russian state, processed at least 283 metric tonnes of cash rubles worth more than US$14 billion between November 2024 and July 2025, according to an investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and Russian independent media outlet Proekt. The findings raise concerns about how large volumes of cash with unverified origins can enter international payment channels and move across borders without cl

The European Commission has issued statements addressing United States sanctions measures adopted in October 2026, expressing concern over their implications for international pressure on Russia and the continued operation of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The statements concern a US executive order waiving sanctions and tariffs required under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, and US sanctions against the ICC under Executive Order 14203.

The United Kingdom has broadened its global human rights sanctions framework to cover serious violations of international humanitarian law, unlawful restrictions on personal liberty and the obstruction of humanitarian assistance, giving the government wider powers to hold individuals and organisations accountable for abuses around the world. The new Global Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Sanctions Regulations 2026 came into force on October 15, replacing the

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