Iran's entire digital asset industry included in U.S. sanctions scope; U.S. Treasury expands OFAC authority

Odaily Planet Daily reported that Bitcoin News posted on the X platform, stating that the U.S. Treasury has expanded sanctions against Iran, bringing the country's entire digital asset industry under sanctioned scope. OFAC can now take measures against industry operators regardless of their location. The measure took effect on August 24, with sanctions also covering gold, shipping, aviation, and technology. Elliptic tracking found that Iran's central bank has obtained at least $507 million worth of USDT; Tether froze $344 million in USDT linked to the bank in April. Iran also acquires crypto assets through Bitcoin mining, with Elliptic estimating its Bitcoin mining accounts for approximately 4.5% globally, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto assets annually. This measure does not automatically sanction all Iranian cryptocurrency users, but the U.S. Treasury has gained broader authority over the industry and supporters of related designated entities.