US sanctions eight Canadian financial firms for helping Iran evade sanctions

[Financial News] The US government has designated eight Canada-based financial services firms for sanctions for helping Iran evade financial sanctions. It also plans to block a cryptocurrency exchange implicated in sanctions evasion by North Korea, Iran and Russia from accessing the US financial system.
According to Reuters on the 6th local time, the US Treasury announced sanctions against eight financial services firms headquartered in Canada, including currency exchange and remittance firms, saying they had supported financial transactions for Iranian entities subject to US sanctions.
The sanctions list includes Divers Trade (Million Exchange), Para Exchange and Darvishi Exchange, located in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and British Columbia.
Under the measures, the firms’ assets in the United States will be frozen, and transactions with US persons and companies will be prohibited. They will also face significant restrictions on financial transactions in US dollars.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “Canada must not become a safe haven for illicit financial intermediaries that help the Iranian regime and its proxies evade sanctions,” adding, “The Treasury will track and disrupt the Iranian regime’s financial channels wherever they operate around the world.”
Separately, the US Treasury plans to block MEXC Global, a cryptocurrency exchange incorporated in the Seychelles, from accessing the US financial system as well.
The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) said MEXC Global had facilitated at least $16 billion (about 22 trillion won) in illicit financial transactions related to sanctions evasion by Iran, North Korea and Russia.
[email protected] Kim Ye-ji Reporter