FINCast Ep. 19 - The DPRK Sanctions Program
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
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
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
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
On March 30, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions, pursuant to Executive Order 13551, against a Slovakian national for attempting to facilitate arms deals between Russia...more
With the war in Ukraine raging on, the U.S. continued to escalate its sanctions response against Russia. The U.S. announced extensive trade and investment bans that prohibit U.S. persons from making any “new investment” in...more
The world’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominated the first quarter of 2022, as the US and its international partners coordinated efforts to impose unprecedented sanctions designed to isolate the Russian...more
In an increasingly integrated global economy, and as businesses shift to online sales and a broader client base, it is important to have a clear understanding of, among other things, the U.S. sanctions in place, and the...more
The executive order expands the extraterritorial reach of existing North Korea sanctions by extending it to US persons’ dealings with non-US actors that do business with North Korea....more
On November 30, 2016, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) passed a unanimous resolution strengthening sanctions against North Korea. The Resolution comes in response to the conduct of the latest round of nuclear tests...more
Overview of US and EU Trade Sanctions - Following is a summary of the current US and EU sanctions that restrict trade with and/or investment in certain countries, “Specially Designated Nationals” (SDNs) and “Blocked...more
The United Nations Security Council (“UNSC”) approved a Resolution last week imposing new sanctions against North Korea in response to its recent nuclear and missile tests. This UNSC action follows the enactment of the North...more
After weeks of negotiations and a Putin-backed delay, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2270 on March 2, 2016, imposing new sanctions against North Korea. According to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry,...more
As if to provide a not-too-subtle reminder to insurers of the applicability of U.S. trade sanctions to their businesses, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) announced on August 6, that a New...more
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that Navigators Insurance Company, which is headquartered in New York and specializes in marine insurance and related lines of business,...more
Focusing on overseas cyber threats, President Obama issued an Executive Order on April 1, 2015, which grants authorization to impose sanctions on individuals and entities engaged "in malicious cyber-enabled activities that...more
Last week, U.S. authorities settled criminal charges against a subsidiary of Schlumberger Ltd. and civil claims against PayPal, Inc. Federal authorities alleged that these companies violated U.S. embargoes and other economic...more
Recent actions by the U.S. Congress and several executive branch agencies have resulted in changes to sanctions related to various countries and regions, including Cuba, North Korea, Crimea, and Venezuela....more
During the same week that President Barack Obama announced sweeping changes in the diplomatic and trade relationships between the United States and Cuba, the president signed congressional legislation authorizing additional...more