Source publication time: November 7, 2026, at 05:06:03 UTC+8.
Reported status: Order issued; restrictions take effect 30 days after publication in the Federal Register. The source does not provide that publication date or a confirmed effective date.
The U.S. Treasury Department issued an order through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) on Friday to bar U.S. financial institutions from processing funds transfers to or from crypto exchange MEXC Global, according to Decrypt.
The measure is part of Operation Economic Outcast. Treasury accused the exchange of facilitating at least $16 billion in illicit transactions tied to Iran, North Korea and Russia. The order uses a provision of the Combating Russian Money Laundering Act, rather than a standard sanctions designation.
Timeline and allegations
- 2018: MEXC was founded. According to FinCEN figures cited in the report, the exchange processes more than $1 billion in daily transactions, holds around $5 billion in reserves and offers more than 3,000 tokens. Decrypt described it as one of the world’s 20 largest crypto exchanges.
- May 2021–May 2026: FinCEN alleged that MEXC moved at least $16 billion connected to illicit activity. That included nearly $1.5 billion tied to Russian sanctions evasion, with $232 million in direct transactions with sanctioned entities.
- As recently as June 2026: FinCEN said MEXC continued transacting with sanctioned Russian exchange Garantex and its successor, Grinex—more than four years after Garantex was first designated.
- Friday, as reported in the November 7 article: Treasury issued the transfer restriction. Its implementation is tied to Federal Register publication, not the article’s publication time.
FinCEN named MEXC a “primary money laundering concern” in connection with Russian illicit finance. The agency alleged “severe deficiencies” in its compliance, despite the exchange’s public claims of anti-money-laundering controls and restrictions on users in jurisdictions including Iran and North Korea.
The agency also said MEXC processed roughly $200 million linked to the A7A5 stablecoin and about $22 million benefiting Iran’s central bank and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Broader enforcement context
Decrypt reported that Treasury had designated Russia’s A7 Network a transnational criminal organization the previous month and proposed cutting its front companies off from U.S. finance. Treasury flagged more than $179 billion in transactions through the network’s ruble-backed A7A5 token, much of it routed through Garantex and Grinex.
The report also described Treasury’s expanded authority to sanction anyone operating in Iran’s crypto sector and its blacklisting of Iranian exchange Nobitex over its role in funneling crypto to the IRGC.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent framed the MEXC action as part of an effort to sever Iran’s economic lifelines and prevent digital assets from being used to evade sanctions.
Calendar distinction: The order had been issued at the time of reporting, but the source does not establish that the transfer ban was already in force. The stated trigger is 30 days after Federal Register publication.
