Bithumb Restricts Crypto Deposits and Withdrawals Related to OFAC Sanctioned Entities
South Korean exchange Bithumb will restrict cryptocurrency deposit and withdrawal services involving Shelbit, Aban Tether, and Crypto Home DMCC.
Previously, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) placed these three companies on its sanctions list for supporting terrorist organizations, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran, or for money laundering activities.
This measure strengthens the narrative of global exchanges' rapid response to sanctions compliance, with funds and transaction flows shifting towards unrestricted compliant channels, putting pressure on cross-border liquidity involving related entities.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
Recently, OFAC expanded sanctions on Iranian-related cryptocurrency networks, adding Shelbit and its affiliated entities, Aban Tether, etc., to the list, accusing them of handling funds related to the IRGC and money laundering activities, covering companies registered in multiple countries.
Bithumb's response focuses on immediate compliance severance: quickly restricting related deposits and withdrawals after the sanctions announcement, motivated by the desire to avoid secondary sanction risks and maintain channels with international banks and regulators, reflecting the high sensitivity of South Korean exchanges to U.S. sanctions.
Similar cases can be seen in the rapid delisting of sanctioned Iranian platforms or mixing services by several exchanges, as well as OFAC's ongoing enforcement against cryptocurrency evasion networks, currently in a phase where sanctions extend to secondary service providers.
This essentially represents a regulatory change: U.S. unilateral sanctions are transmitted to the global market through exchange compliance, with the mechanism being to limit deposits and withdrawals to directly cut off liquidity access for sanctioned entities, significantly reducing the availability of related crypto assets on mainstream platforms.
ABAB News · Cognitive Law
- Once the sanctions list is published, exchanges react faster than courts.
- Deposit and withdrawal restrictions are the shortest path to cutting off liquidity.
- Compliance costs are ultimately borne by users and related assets.