U.S. Sanctions Eight Canadian Crypto-Linked Money Firms

The U.S. Treasury Department has imposed blocking sanctions on eight Canadian money services businesses that it says helped move money between Iran and the international financial system through currency exchange and cryptocurrency transactions, expanding Washington's enforcement campaign beyond major crypto exchanges to smaller businesses that connect physical cash, fiat currencies and digital assets. The designated companies operate primarily in Ontario and British Columbia and include businesses known publicly as Million Exchange, Amin Exchange, NIA Nations, Farah Exchange and Cryptoyal. Treasury alleges that several interacted with sanctioned Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges, addresses connected to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and, in some cases, a separate Canadian drug-trafficking network that converted cash proceeds into cryptocurrency for transfer abroad.