US sanctions 8 Canadian firms over Iran-linked money transfers
What's new: Treasury tied some of the firms to rial-to-crypto exchanges and said some also worked with accused trafficker Ryan Wedding.
The US imposed sanctions on eight Canadian entities that it said helped process international transactions involving Iran, widening pressure on Tehran and on financial intermediaries outside the country. The Treasury Department said the firms enabled exchanges of Iranian rials and other currencies into digital assets, activity Washington says helped Iran and people tied to it evade sanctions. Treasury said some of the entities also worked with Ryan Wedding, a former Olympian whom the FBI has accused of running a major cocaine trafficking network. The move was coordinated with Canada’s financial intelligence agency, Fintrac, and the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network as part of what Treasury calls Operation Economic Outcast.