FINCast Ep. 19 - The DPRK Sanctions Program
On March 21, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) officially lifted sanctions on Tornado Cash, the decentralized cryptocurrency mixer it had blacklisted in August 2022....more
Today, April 8, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Final Rule restricting transfers of bulk sensitive personal data and U.S. government-related data becomes effective, implementing former President Biden’s Executive Order...more
On February 21, 2025, Bybit, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, suffered a cyberattack resulting in the theft of approximately $1.5 billion in Ethereum tokens. This attack marked a new pinnacle in the...more
North Korean IT operatives are infiltrating U.S. and Western companies using stolen or fabricated identities, VPNs, and U.S.-based co-conspirators to gain unauthorized access to corporate systems. These insider threats pose...more
Throughout 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") published 12 enforcement actions regarding alleged sanctions violations by foreign and domestic persons and entities....more
On Friday, December 27, 2024, the Justice Department issued a final rule to address “urgent national security risks posed by access to U.S. sensitive personal and government-related data from countries of concern and covered...more
On November 26, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned sanctions imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) against a decentralized cryptocurrency mixing service (a...more
On November 26, 2024, the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion in Van Loon v. Department of the Treasury that invalidated economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) on...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) have recently announced two enforcement actions that demonstrate the U.S. government's aggressive and...more
North Korea Sanctions Violations - In a recent enforcement action, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) imposed an $860,000 penalty on Vietnam Beverage Company Limited (“VBCL”), a...more
Global companies face significant risks in their supply chains of compliance with OFAC’s economic sanctions regime. OFAC has emphasized the importance of conducting supply chain risk assessments and audits....more
On June 26, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the settlement of an enforcement action against an Italian animation company that violated OFAC’s sanctions on North Korea. The enforcement action...more
OFAC has been busy and not so busy — what do I mean? OFAC is administering a complex set of coordinated sanctions against Russia, in close coordination with the EU and the UK....more
Throughout 2023 and early 2024, we continue to witness deepening geopolitical and economic divides globally. The U.S. and its allies (most significantly the EU and the G7), spurred on by Russia’s war in Ukraine, continue to...more
During the first quarter of 2024, there were significant developments in the U.S. sanctions framework. This report summarizes the key developments and provides links to the relevant sources....more
In a sweeping, coordinated effort across federal agencies, the US government has taken a giant leap forward to prevent access to data that could be exploited to the detriment of national security. On February 28, 2024,...more
As federal regulators have recently made clear, steamship lines, non-vessel-operating common carriers, indirect air carriers, freight forwarders, and others involved in the global movement of cargo must ensure that their...more
U.S. government agencies continue to take action against cryptocurrency mixing services that enable cybercriminals to obfuscate the trail of stolen proceeds on public blockchains stemming from illicit cyber activity. On...more
Background: On Friday November 29, 2023, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Sinbad.io (“Sinbad”), alleging that the virtual currency mixer serves as a key money-laundering...more
The U.S. authorities are increasingly taking actions against big-name crypto mixers for potential violations of sanctions regulations. On November 29, 2023, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control...more
In two prior posts, this blog tracked the ongoing intrigue of how the various branches of the United States government interact with blockchain and cryptocurrency organizations. We discussed the Wyoming law allowing...more
CryptoLink is a compilation of news stories published by outside organizations. Akin aggregates these stories, but the information contained in them does not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of the firm. Akin's...more
On May 23, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions, pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13687 and E.O. 13810, against four entities and one individual, involved in obscure...more
The Justice Department warned companies that sanctions enforcement is the “new FCPA.” DOJ just delivered its first salvo to back up its message....more
On April 25, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a $508 million settlement with one of the world’s largest tobacco companies to resolve potential civil liabilities stemming from...more