More than 100 Senate and House members this week asked the Biden administration to explain the steps it’s taking to address Hamas’ and other terrorist groups’ use of cryptocurrency to raise money and evade sanctions. In an Oct. 17 bipartisan letter to the Treasury Department and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, the lawmakers pointed to reports that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad collectively raised over $130 million in crypto between August 2021 and June 2023, and asked if the administration needs more tools to “address the national security threats posed by illicit use of crypto by terrorist organizations.”
The leaders of the House Select Committee on China are seeking information from venture capital company Sequoia on its investments in Chinese technology companies after the company announced it planned to split from its Chinese affiliate by March. In an Oct. 17 letter sent to Sequoia executives, Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., said that even though the company’s split from Sequoia Capital China is a “step in the right direction,” questions remain about whether the move will “staunch future flows of American capital to problematic” Chinese companies.
U.N. sanctions on Iranian missile-related activities expired Oct. 18, as part of a sunset clause included in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which had lifted certain sanctions against Iran in return for the country placing limits on its nuclear program. The sunset in the nuclear deal “was based on the assumption that Iran would take the necessary steps towards restoring confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its nuclear program,” the State Department said. “This has not happened.”
Kazakhstan is placing export restrictions on 106 types of military-related items in order to better comply with Western sanctions against Russia, Russian news agency Interfax reported Oct. 19. The report, citing Kazakhstan’s Vice Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebaev, said the controls will impact spare parts for drones, special electronics chips and more. Exports of those goods are now “completely limited," Torebaev said.
The Treasury Department issued four new general licenses this week to suspend certain sanctions on Venezuela after the country's government and opposition formally agreed to work together on conditions for the next presidential election. The general licenses authorize certain transactions involving Venezuela's oil, gas and gold sectors and remove a trading ban on certain Venezuelan sovereign bonds and the debt and equity involving Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA), the country’s state-owned energy company. Treasury issued new guidance to explain the changes.
The Commerce Department’s long-awaited routed export rule continues to face delays due to a lack of agency resources and attention, said Gerry Horner, chief of the Census Bureau’s Trade Regulations Branch. Horner said both Census and the Bureau of Industry and Security currently “just don't have the resources” to make progress on the effort.
The U.K. Solicitors Regulation Authority released its annual Anti-Money Laundering report for 2022-23, covering the agency's role in addressing money laundering and terrorism financing, the role of private parties, enforcement activity, how to report suspicious activity, sanctions, case studies and risk assessments.
The U.K. delisted then replaced 78 entries on its Iran nuclear sanctions list as part of its decision to continue sanctions following Iran's failure to implement the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced. The actions took place on Oct. 18, the JCPOA Transition Day, when certain restrictions were set to expire. All entities, including 20 individuals and 58 individuals, remain subject to an asset freeze.
The U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office released a statement after a Court of Appeal decision relating to how the U.K. government may sanction a Russian entity based on what parties can exert control over it. The agency said it is "carefully considering" the decision's impact, specifically the decision that PJSC National Bank is controlled by sanctioned parties due to their political office (see 2301310028).
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned various Hamas members, operatives and financial facilitators in an effort to “root out” the terror group’s revenue sources in the West Bank, Gaza and throughout the region. OFAC said the designations build on the nearly 1,000 people and entities already sanctioned by the agency and who are connected to terrorism and terrorist financing by the Iranian regime and its “proxies.”