Lawrence Ward on Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)

Attorney General Bondi Reorients National Security Enforcement Resources to Focus on Illegal Immigration and Drug Trafficking

Upon being sworn in on February 5, 2025, Attorney General Pamela Bondi immediately issued memoranda reorienting national security enforcement resources of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) to focus on addressing illegal...more

2/21/2025 / Criminal Prosecution , Department of Justice (DOJ) , Drug Trafficking , Economic Sanctions , Export Controls , Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) , Immigration Reform , International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) , Israel , National Security , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)

Biden Administration Again Expands Sanctions on Russia and Its Third Party Supporters

As Russia continues its war against Ukraine and Ukraine has itself recently opened a new front by capturing Russian territory in its Kursk region, the United States announced on August 23 its latest tranche of sanctions...more

9/6/2024 / Biden Administration , Corporate Counsel , Defense Sector , Economic Sanctions , Export Controls , Exports , Foreign Policy , G7 , General Licenses , Know Your Customers , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Record Retention , Russia , SDN List , Statute of Limitations , Technology Sector , U.S. Commerce Department , Ukraine

U.S. Piles on Array of New Sanctions Against Russian Military-Industrial and Financial Sectors

On February 23, building mainly upon the broad authority of Executive Order 14024 (“EO 14024”)[1] issued by President Joe Biden in 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), the...more

3/5/2024 / Biden Administration , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Defense Sector , Economic Sanctions , Export Controls , Foreign Policy , Foreign Trade Regulations , General Licenses , Iran , Military Conflict , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , Ukraine

Biden Administration Adds Sanctions Against Foreign Financial Institutions Supporting Russia’s Military-Industrial Base

As the February 2022 Russian invasion of neighboring Ukraine approaches its second anniversary and as Russia has increasingly turned to covert relationships with third country providers to avoid U.S., European Union and other...more

2/6/2024 / Banking Sector , CAPTA List , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) , Foreign Policy , Foreign Relations , National Security , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Popular , Russia

Executive Order 14105 on Outbound Investment in China and Proposed Rule

On August 9, President Biden issued Executive Order 14105 (“EO 14105”) on Addressing United States Investments in Certain National Security Technologies and Products in Countries of Concern. EO 14105 significantly reshapes...more

8/16/2023 / Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) , Biden Administration , China , Civil Monetary Penalty , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Foreign Investment , Hong Kong , Macau , National Security , Notice Requirements , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Outbound Transactions , Public Comment , Regulatory Agenda , Technology Sector , U.S. Commerce Department , U.S. Treasury

U.S. Treasury Department Takes Action Against Russian Darkmarket Entity as Latest Government Move Against Cybercrime

On April 5, the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) in the U.S. Department of the Treasury named Genesis Market to OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals List (“SDN List”). Genesis Market is...more

4/27/2023 / Cryptocurrency , Cyber Crimes , Cyber Threats , Dark Web , Department of Justice (DOJ) , Enforcement Priorities , FBI , FinCEN , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Online Platforms , Russia , SDN List , U.S. Treasury

Congress, President Align on Powerful New U.S. Intellectual Property Protection Law

On January 5, 2023, President Biden ushered in the new year by signing into law the Protecting American Intellectual Property Act of 2022 (“PAIPA”), Pub. Law 117-336.1 PAIPA was passed with considerable bipartisan support in...more

1/23/2023 / Biden Administration , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Corporate Counsel , Economic Sanctions , Export-Import Bank of the US , Foreign Entities , Foreign Persons , Intellectual Property Protection , International Trade , New Legislation , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Theft , Trade Secrets , U.S. Commerce Department , USPTO

U.S. Treasury Department Clarifies Previous Prohibitions on New Investments in Russian Equities & on Export of Trust, Accounting &...

On June 6, 2022, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) within the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced new Frequently Answered Questions (“FAQs”) that interpret several previous Executive Orders (“EOs”) issued by...more

6/10/2022 / Accounting , Biden Administration , Consultants , Contract Management , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Export Controls , Exports , Financial Services Industry , Foreign Investment , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , Ukraine

U.S. Bars Accounting, Trust and Corporate Formation, and Management Consulting Services and Adds Export Restrictions to Russia

The United States has announced yet another round of economic sanctions against Russia that builds on existing sanctions and extends them to new sectors of the Russian economy. The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of...more

5/18/2022 / Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Commerce Control List , Consultants , Duties , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Export Controls , Financial Services Agency , General Licenses , Imports , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , SDN List , Trade Restrictions

U.S. Government Sanctions Sberbank and Alfa Bank, Prohibits All New Investments in Russia, and Imposes New Export Restrictions...

On April 6, 2022, the U.S. Government announced its latest round of sanctions against the Russian Federation in coordination with the European Union (“EU”) and other allies. President Biden issued Executive Order 14071 (“EO...more

4/11/2022 / Biden Administration , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Export Controls , Most-Favored Nations , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , Tariffs , Trade Restrictions , Ukraine

U.S. Expands Russian Energy Sector Sanctions, Proposes Major Tariff Hikes on Nearly All Russian-Origin Goods & Imposes New...

As part of its expanding sanctions against Russia, the Biden Administration on March 8, 2022, issued Executive Order 14066 (“EO 14066,” see here) to bar imports into the United States of Russian crude oil, petroleum;...more

3/14/2022 / Biden Administration , Blocked Entities , Blocked Person , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Export Controls , Foreign Policy , General Licenses , Imports , Most-Favored Nations , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , Tariffs , Ukraine

FinCEN Urges Financial Institutions to Guard Against Attempts to Evade Sanctions

On March 7, 2022, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) issued an alert (the “FinCEN Alert”) urging financial institutions to proactively guard against possible attempts to evade recently implemented sanctions...more

3/10/2022 / Biden Administration , BSA/AML , Compliance , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Financial Institutions , FinCEN , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) , Ukraine

United States Imposes More Sanctions to Block Russian Access to U.S. Banking System and U.S. Goods, Technology or Software

On February 24, 25 and 28, the United States broadened its economic sanctions against Russia in response to its full-scale military invasion of Ukraine. As the Biden Administration had promised in recent weeks, in close...more

3/2/2022 / Blocked Entities , Blocked Person , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Economic Sanctions , Export Controls , Exports , Financial Institutions , Military End Use , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , SDN List , Software , Sovereign Debt , Technology , Ukraine

U.S. and Allied Countries Impose Sanctions Targeting Russian Financial Sector and Ukraine Separatist-Territories

The Biden Administration and several allied countries announced on February 22 new economic sanctions on Russia and the separatist territories in Ukraine. In the United States, the sanctions target only certain Russian...more

2/23/2022 / Biden Administration , Blocked Entities , Blocked Person , Economic Sanctions , Embargo , Financial Institutions , General Licenses , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Russia , SDN List , U.S. Treasury , Ukraine

U.S. Government Expands Restrictions on Exports to China, Iran, and Russia and Issues New Business Advisory Regarding Forced Labor...

The Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) in U.S. Department of Commerce has added 34 more companies to its Entity List in its continued expansion of U.S. export controls to address human rights in the Xinjiang Uyghur...more

7/21/2021 / Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , China , Customs and Border Protection , Entity List , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Export Controls , Forced Labor , General Licenses , Human Rights , Iran , Military End Use , National Security , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Popular , Russia , SDN List , Tariff Act of 1930 , U.S. Commerce Department , Withhold Release Orders (WROs)

Biden Administration Revises and Expands Restrictions on U.S. Person Investment in Chinese Companies and Releases New List of...

The Biden Administration last week substantially modified restrictions on U.S. person investments in certain Chinese companies, focusing those new restrictions particularly on entities with ties to the Chinese defense or...more

6/11/2021 / Biden Administration , China , Department of Defense (DOD) , Executive Orders , Military End Use , NDAA , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Publicly-Traded Companies , SDN List , Surveillance , Technology Sector , Trump Administration

U.S. Reimposes Economic Sanctions On Military Regime in Burma

Effective June 1, 2021, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) published new Burmese Sanctions Regulations (“BSR”) that implement President Biden’s February 10, 2021, Executive Order...more

6/7/2021 / Biden Administration , Blocked Person , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , Burma , Economic Sanctions , Executive Orders , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Export Controls , Exports , George W Bush , ITAR , Myanmar , Obama Administration , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , President Clinton

U.S. Department of Commerce Sanctions Seven Chinese Supercomputer Firms

On April 8, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) added seven Chinese supercomputer firms and organizations to its Entity List, the agency’s principal export sanctions list. BIS alleges...more

4/26/2021 / Biden Administration , Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) , China , Customs and Border Protection , Entity List , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Exports , Forced Labor , Huawei , Human Rights , Imports , National Security , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Supply Chain , Technology Sector , U.S. Commerce Department , ZTE

U.S. Court Blocks Trump-Era Trading Ban on Xiaomi Stock - 美国法院阻止特朗普对美国人投资小米的禁令

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia recently ruled that certain securities trading restrictions will be prevented from going into effect with respect to Xiaomi Corporation (“Xiaomi”) under Section 1237 of the...more

3/26/2021 / Administrative Procedure Act , Biden Administration , China , Department of Defense (DOD) , Military End Use , Military Goods , NDAA , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Trump Administration

Trump Administration Revises List of State Sponsors of Terrorism

On January 11, Secretary of State Michael Pompeo announced the Trump Administration in its final week in office is returning Cuba to the official State Department list of state sponsors of terrorism. Cuba will thus re-join...more

1/15/2021 / Biden Administration , Cuba , Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) , Export Administration Regulations (EAR) , Foreign Policy , Humanitarian Assistance , ITAR , NGOs , Obama Administration , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , State Sponsors of Terrorism , Trump Administration , TSRA , United Nations

Trump Administration Bars U.S. Investments in Certain Chinese Companies Linked to Chinese Military

On November 12, 2020, President Trump issued Executive Order 139591 (“the Order”) that will shortly bar any U.S. person from “any transaction in publicly traded securities, or any securities that are derivative of, or are...more

11/20/2020 / China , Corporate Counsel , Defense Sector , Department of Defense (DOD) , Divestment , Entity List , Executive Orders , Foreign Investment , International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) , National Security , NDAA , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Publicly-Traded Companies , Trump Administration , US Trade Policies

Trump Administration Allows Lawsuits Against Persons Who Have Used Assets Confiscated by the Cuban Government, Imposes More...

On April 17, 2019, the Trump Administration announced that it would now allow plaintiffs to file U.S. federal court cases against individuals and companies that use private property expropriated by the Cuban government after...more

4/23/2019 / Blocking Statutes , Canada , Cuba , Damages , Economic Sanctions , EU , Expropriation , Fair Market Value , Foreign Entities , Mexico , Multinationals , Nicaragua , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Personal Property , Secretary of State , Trafficking , Trump Administration , Venezuela

Farm Bill Opens the Door to Federal Aid to Market Agricultural Exports to Cuba

As part of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill) signed into law by President Trump today, Congress authorized the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to use federal funds to assist in the marketing of...more

12/21/2018 / Agricultural Sector , Commodities , Cuba , Farm Bill , Federal Funding , Marketing , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Trump Administration , TSRA , USDA

U.S. Reimposes Economic Sanctions On Iran

On November 5, 2018, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) will reimpose certain economic sanctions against Iran that had been held in abeyance under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action...more

11/5/2018 / Iran , Iran Sanctions , Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , SDN List , Trump Administration , U.S. Treasury

Trump Administration’s North Korea Travel Ban to Start September 1, Likely Prelude to Expanded North Korea Sanctions Effort

Citing both “serious risk to United States nationals of arrest and long-term detention” and the “imminent danger to the physical safety of United States nationals,” on August 2, the U.S. State Department issued a Geographical...more

8/7/2017 / China , Economic Sanctions , North Korea , Nuclear Weapons , Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) , Passports , Travel Ban , Trump Administration

Lawrence Ward

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Popular Topics by This Author

Latest Posts › Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)