The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently announced sanctions against two Iranian nationals, Alireza Derakhshan and Arash Estaki Alivand, for their involvement in orchestrating crypto transactions to facilitate Iran’s oil sales in violation of international restrictions.
According to OFAC, Derakhshan and Alivand played key roles in a network that moved over $100 million worth of crypto between 2023 and 2025. They used multiple front companies in various jurisdictions to obscure the trail of funds used in Iran’s oil-for-crypto trade.
These sanctions were imposed under Executive Order 13224, which targets individuals who provide financial or technological support to terrorism-related entities. In this case, both men were found to have assisted the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps–Qods Force (IRGC-QF), a heavily sanctioned military branch in Iran.
Alivand, described as an oil broker and financial facilitator, collaborated closely with the Syria-based Al-Qatirji Company, a known partner of the IRGC-QF in distributing Iranian oil. He facilitated a payment from a front company run by Derakhshan to Al-Qatirji in 2023, directly linking crypto transactions to sanctioned oil sales. Alivand also engaged in multimillion-dollar transactions with Tawfiq Muhammad Sa’id Al-Law, a money changer with ties to Hezbollah, who provided access to digital wallets for funds related to IRGC-QF activities.
Derakhshan, on the other hand, set up and managed companies in Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates to process transactions for Iranian entities already facing sanctions. These structures enabled Iran to evade restrictions while maintaining financial flows in global markets.
John K. Hurley, the Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, emphasized the importance of cracking down on these shadow banking networks used by Iranian entities to circumvent sanctions and move millions through the international financial system.
Following the sanctions, both individuals are prohibited from engaging with US persons or institutions. Any individual or entity found facilitating their transactions could face secondary sanctions.
This development underscores the growing trend of sanctioned states turning to cryptocurrencies to bypass traditional financial barriers. Iran’s use of digital assets mirrors similar tactics employed by Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, where crypto has become a tool for evading Western penalties.
The integration of these sanctions into the international financial system demonstrates the need for continued vigilance and enforcement measures to prevent the misuse of cryptocurrencies for illicit purposes.