Washington launched « Operation Economic Outcast » on August 24, imposing sanctions on nearly 60 individuals, entities and vessels while expanding OFAC’s authority over Iran’s digital-asset sector under Executive Order 13902. Bitcoin climbed to $80,887, its highest since mid-May, and gold reached a three-month high, driven primarily by a weaker dollar and alternative asset demand rather than the sanctions themselves. Treasury alleged that UAE-based Ivan Obukhov processed more than $100 million in cryptocurrency payments since 2023 to facilitate oil sales for Iran’s IRGC-Quds Force. China, Iran’s largest oil buyer, rejected the US demand, stating its cooperation with Iran was conducted within international law and that Beijing would take measures to protect its interests. The campaign revived comparisons with the Western response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, when roughly $280 billion in Russian sovereign assets were immobilized.
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