U.S. Sanctions 8 Canadian Exchanges Moving Iran’s Crypto
OFAC sanctioned eight Canadian money services businesses on Nov. 6, saying they swapped Iranian rials for crypto and dealt with IRGC-linked wallets.
Featured photo: Toronto’s financial district and old city hall (file photo). Photo: Arild Vågen, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated eight money services businesses based in Canada on Nov. 6, 2026, saying they help the Iranian regime and other illicit actors move money into and out of Iran.
The companies exchange Iranian rials and other currencies for digital assets, Treasury said, and many have dealt with sanctioned Iranian crypto exchanges and with wallet addresses tied to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Who was named
OFAC designated Diverse Trade Inc (doing business as Million Exchange), 1380079 BC Limited and its affiliate Top PC Technician Inc (both doing business as Amin Exchange), NIA Nations Currency Ltd, 2397639 Ontario Ltd (Farah Exchange), CCC Inc, B Galaxy Inc (Cryptoyal) and Darvish Exchange. The firms are in Ontario and British Columbia.
Treasury said wallets linked to the firms traded with sanctioned Iranian exchanges including Nobitex, Wallex, Ramzinex, Bitpin, Aban Tether and Shelbit. It said addresses tied to Million Exchange, Farah Exchange and CCC Inc sent or received funds linked to the IRGC or terrorism.
The drug-money link
Treasury said several of the firms worked with Ryan Wedding, a sanctioned Canadian drug trafficker it said used exchange businesses in the Vancouver and Toronto areas to launder billions of dollars. Couriers brought bulk cash that the firms converted to crypto and sent abroad, according to the release. Wedding was apprehended in January 2026, Treasury said.
The department said some of the firms changed their names and addresses to avoid detection and remain in operation. The release did not include responses from the companies.
Coordination
Treasury said the action was coordinated with FinCEN, with FINTRAC, Canada’s financial intelligence unit, and with the Drug Enforcement Administration. The designations were made under Executive Order 13902, which covers Iran’s digital asset sector. “Canada cannot be a safe haven for illicit financial facilitators,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.
What it means
Analysis: The case shows money flows the release says are traceable on-chain: wallets of small storefront exchangers touching sanctioned Iranian platforms and IRGC-linked addresses. Naming FINTRAC as a partner suggests Canadian follow-up, but the release does not say whether Canada will take its own action.
Sources
- U.S. Department of the Treasury: Operation Economic Outcast Sanctions Eight Canadian Money Services Businesses Enabling Iranian Regime
- U.S. Department of the Treasury: Operation Economic Outcast Severs MEXC Global’s Access to the U.S. Financial System
Related coverage
- Economic Warfare Update Nov 7, 2026: MEXC Cut Off, FATF
- Iran War Update Nov 7, 2026: Trump Talks, Riyadh Intercepts
- U.S. Sanctions Fake Ship Registries Used by Iran’s Tankers
