US sanctions Dubai crypto exchange accused of aiding Iran’s IRGC

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned Shelbit, a Dubai-based crypto exchange, on Friday, accusing it of helping Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps move money outside the traditional banking system. The action followed an earlier Reuters investigation that traced at least $4 billion in illicit Iranian gambling flows through the unlicensed exchange and tied the case to a wider sanctions-evasion network built around crypto, online betting and front companies in the United Arab Emirates. Treasury’s move can freeze any assets under U.S. jurisdiction, cut off access to the American financial system and warn banks and counterparties around the world away from the targeted firm.

A Reuters investigation published July 31 found that Shelbit processed money for a Farsi-language gambling network spanning more than 2,000 websites. Blockchain records showed about $676 million moving onward to Binance wallets, while the exchange also handled funds linked to Iran’s central bank and other sanctioned Iranian exchange channels. Those links put the Dubai platform at the center of a system designed to move capital beyond the reach of normal compliance controls.

The Treasury Department’s sanctions package, announced under the banner of targeting crypto exchanges funding Iran’s IRGC and enabling illicit finance, aimed beyond Shelbit alone. Treasury also moved against other crypto-related actors tied to the same network, widening the case beyond a single exchange. The action reflected Washington’s broader effort to close digital-asset loopholes that sanctioned actors have used to shift money quickly, pseudonymously and across borders without relying on correspondent banks.

For U.S. regulators, that makes exchanges a critical choke point. Compliance teams are now expected to monitor wallets, counterparties, transaction patterns and links to sanctioned organizations with the same rigor once reserved for traditional banking. In practice, that scrutiny reaches beyond the exchange itself and into the firms, platforms and payment channels that touch its flows.

Dubai’s role in the network adds pressure on the United Arab Emirates, which has become a major crypto and financial hub even as U.S. officials push for tighter enforcement against illicit flows. The case also underscores why the IRGC remains a focus of sanctions policy. As one of Iran’s most heavily sanctioned institutions, any allegation that a financial intermediary helped it move funds is likely to trigger a swift response from Washington and sharper scrutiny of other exchanges operating in the Gulf.