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Economic Sanctions
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OFAC designates Venezuela’s Cartel de los Soles as a global terrorist group for drug trafficking and aiding foreign terror groups – targeting state‑backed corruption and narcotrafficking
OFAC designates the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist due to its involvement in large-scale narcotics trafficking and its provision of material support to foreign terrorist organisations, including Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel. These actions undermine regional security and contribute to transnational organised crime, prompting the sanctions to disrupt the cartel’s financial networks and restrict its operational capabilities…
HMT consults on proposed reforms to toughen OFSI enforcement with a Case Assessment Matrix, stricter discounts, new settlement tools, and fines up to £2M or 100% of breach value – open until 13 Oct 2025
Key proposals include a new Case Assessment Matrix to better link breach severity with penalties; introducing an Early Account Scheme offering up to 40% penalty discounts for early cooperation; capping voluntary disclosure discounts at 30%; and adding a settlement option with an extra 20% discount for swift resolution…
EU adopts its 18th sanctions package against Russia, tightening oil price caps and export controls, blocking key banks, and targeting shadow fleet vessels and entities supporting the war in Ukraine
The new measures focus on five building blocks: cutting Russia’s energy revenues, hitting Russia’s banking sector, further weakening its military-industrial complex, strengthening anti-circumvention measures, and holding Russia accountable for its crimes against Ukrainian children and cultural heritage. With this package, the number of listed vessels in Russia’s shadow fleet…
U.S Treasury sanctions leaders of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua including kingpin “Niño Guerrero” for involvement in drug trafficking, extortion, and links to terrorism
Sanctions target the leadership of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang, including top figure Héctor Guerrero Flores (“Niño Guerrero”) and five senior members. Sanctions target their involvement in transnational crimes such as drug trafficking, human smuggling, extortion, and money laundering…
OFSI launches new online forms to simplify sanctions compliance processes, including licence applications, breach reporting, and frozen asset notifications
These user-friendly forms provide built-in guidance and mandatory fields to reduce errors and speed up processing by directing submissions straight to the relevant teams. While still optional during a transition period, the online system aims to improve clarity, accessibility, and efficiency for businesses and individuals navigating sanctions requirements. Feedback is welcomed via ofsi@hmtreasury.gov.uk …
EU sanctions 3 Haitian gang leaders with asset freezes and travel bans for violent crimes destabilising Haiti, including a massacre of over 200 people and widespread kidnappings and child recruitment
These measures extend the EU’s sanctions regime through July 2026, reflecting ongoing concerns about Haiti’s escalating violence and political instability. The sanctions, aligned with a 2022 EU framework and UN Security Council resolutions, aim to cut financial support to those fueling chaos and reinforce efforts to restore peace and the rule of law in Haiti…
EU sanctions Iran-linked operatives and the Zindashti Network for transnational repression, targeting extrajudicial killings and dissident crackdowns abroad
The EU Council imposed sanctions on eight individuals and one criminal network—specifically targeting the Zindashti Network, Iranian state-linked proxies, and IRGC/MOIS operatives—for involvement in extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and assassinations of dissidents abroad…
Council of the EU sanctions 9 individuals and 6 entities for disinformation and hybrid attacks supporting Russia’s efforts to destabilize the EU and Ukraine, imposing asset freezes and travel bans
These measures focus on disrupting Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference operations designed to spread disinformation and destabilize democratic processes. Key targets include Russia’s state broadcaster RTRS, responsible for replacing Ukrainian broadcasts with pro-Russian content in occupied areas, as well as electronic warfare units disrupting GPS signals across Europe…
OFAC sanctions 3 key ISIS facilitators in DR of Congo, Somalia, and South Africa for terror financing via extortion, kidnappings, and bombings, cutting them off from the global financial system
Three ISIS facilitators designated in Africa—Zayd Gangat in South Africa, Hamidah Nabagala in the DRC, and Abdiweli Mohamed Yusuf in Somalia—for their roles in financing and enabling bombings, kidnappings, extortion, recruitment, and logistical support. These designations seek to disrupt ISIS’s financial networks across Central and East Africa by blocking assets and restricting international financial access…
OFAC sanctions 22 entities across Hong Kong, the UAE, and Turkey for facilitating Iranian oil sales that fund the IRGC-Quds Force’s terrorism and weapons programs
Sanctions target 22 front companies and entities in Hong Kong, the UAE, and Türkiye that facilitated the sale of Iranian oil to benefit the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps‑Quds Force (IRGC‑QF). The action blocks assets and prohibits U.S. transactions to disrupt the shadow banking network aiding Iran’s terror and weapons programs…
OFAC sanctions North Korean cyber operatives for using disguised foreign agents to steal tech jobs, launder crypto, and fund Pyongyang’s WMD and missile programs
Sanctions target Song Kum Hyok, a DPRK-based cyber actor linked to North Korea’s Reconnaissance General Bureau hacking group Andariel, for orchestrating a global IT worker scheme that recruited North Korean nationals in China and Russia using falsified U.S. identities to gain employment and funnel proceeds toward the regime’s WMD and missile development programs…
OFAC sanctions Russia-based Azea Group, a global bulletproof hosting network that enabled cybercriminals to launch ransomware attacks, steal sensitive data, and evade detection
The designated individuals Penzev, Bozoyan, Gast, and Knyazev held leadership roles in the group’s operations, which have targeted U.S. and international systems. As a result, all their U.S. assets are frozen, and U.S. persons are barred from engaging in transactions with them. The move underscores OFAc’s strategy of using targeted sanctions to disrupt…