Iran's entire digital asset industry included in US sanctions scope, US Treasury expands OFAC authority

Odaily Planet Daily News: Bitcoin News posted on X platform stating that the US Treasury has expanded sanctions against Iran, including the country's entire digital asset industry within the scope of sanctionable targets. OFAC can now take measures against industry operators regardless of their location. The measure took effect on August 24, and the sanctions scope also includes gold, shipping, aviation, and technology. Elliptic's tracking found that the Central Bank of Iran has acquired at least $507 million worth of USDT; Tether froze $344 million in USDT related to the bank in April. Iran also obtains crypto assets through Bitcoin mining, with Elliptic estimating its Bitcoin mining accounts for approximately 4.5% of the global total, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto assets annually. The measure does not automatically sanction all Iranian cryptocurrency users, but the US Treasury has gained greater authority to target the industry and supporters of designated entities.