On 12 June 2024, the US Departments of Treasury, State, and Commerce imposed new restrictions targeting Russia, including: (i) restricting the provision of certain information technology and software services to Russia...more
The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued an interim final rule set to take effect August 8, 2024, which amends the Reporting, Procedures, and Penalties Regulations (the “Regulations”)...more
Following the death of political activist Aleksey Navalny and to mark the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the United States, EU and UK adopted a series of amendments to their respective economic sanctions...more
In recognition of political progress between the Government of Venezuela and opposition parties—notably, the signing of an electoral roadmap agreement between the Unitary Platform and representatives of Nicolas Maduro--the...more
On May 19, 2023, the US Department of Treasury, State, and Commerce imposed the most significant tranche of sanctions and export control measures in several months. The measures included (i) new designations on the Specially...more
The U.S. Government has imposed additional punitive measures against Russia in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine. The new measures include a prohibition on imports of Russian gold into the United States, new SDN and...more
7/5/2022
/ Blocking Sanctions ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
FinCEN ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
State-Owned Enterprises ,
Supply Chain ,
Ukraine
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued General License (“GL”) No. 22 on May 12, 2022, authorizing transactions that are ordinarily incident and necessary to activities that occur in specified, non-regime held...more
The Court of Justice of the EU has interpreted for the first time the Blocking Regulation. The ruling confirms that it is possible to terminate contracts with a US designated person without providing reasons. However, in...more
The decision to pay millions to a cyber criminal has never been easy, but it is now even more complex. The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued an updated advisory on September 21,...more
On 15 April 2021, the U.S. Government announced a number of new sanctions measures against Russia, targeting a variety of “harmful foreign activities” contrary to U.S. foreign policy. ...more
4/21/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Crimea ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Defense Sector ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
SolarWinds ,
Sovereign Debt ,
State-Owned Enterprises ,
Technology Contracts
On 27 February 2020, the Office of Foreign Assets Controls (OFAC) issued General License (GL) 8 authorizing certain humanitarian trade transactions involving the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) that are otherwise prohibited under...more
3/6/2020
/ Banks ,
Commodities ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Food Supply ,
Foreign Relations ,
General Licenses ,
Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations (GTSR) ,
Humanitarian Assistance ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
ITSR ,
Medical Devices ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SDN List ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Switzerland ,
Trade Agreements
On 10 January 2020, in response to missile attacks by the Iranian military targeting two U.S. bases in Iraq, the United States Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated a number of senior...more
1/14/2020
/ Blocked Person ,
Construction Project ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Goods or Services ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Manufacturers ,
Mining ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
SDN List ,
Textiles ,
Trump Administration
On 14 October, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 13894, Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Syria (EO).
...more
10/18/2019
/ Blocked Person ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
SDN List ,
Syria ,
Trump Administration ,
Turkey ,
Unauthorized Transactions
On 5 August 2019 the Trump administration issued Executive Order 13884 (the executive order) imposing sweeping sanctions against the government of Venezuela, including its agencies and instrumentalities as well as any...more
SEA View: Our new monthly periodical has launched! From April 2019, this periodical will feature investigation, compliance, and regulatory developments in Southeast Asia (SEA). For a twelve-month spell, one monthly article...more
On 28 January 2019, the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PdVSA) as a Specially Designated National (SDN) for operating in the oil sector of the...more
On 19 December 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) submitted a notification to Congress that it plans to terminate sanctions on three major companies originally designated for...more
On 5 November 2018 the United States re-imposed the remaining nuclear-related secondary sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) against Iran that previously had...more
11/8/2018
/ Economic Sanctions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
ITSR ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
Nuclear Weapons ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
SDN List ,
Shipping Cargo ,
Trump Administration
The United States has begun re-imposing nuclear-related sanctions with respect to Iran in connection with the expiration of the 90-day wind-down period announced alongside the United States' 8 May 2018 withdrawal from the...more
8/13/2018
/ Economic Sanctions ,
Energy Sector ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Insurance Industry ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
ITSR ,
Nuclear Weapons ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
SDN List ,
Shipping
Declaring that it is “defective at its core,” on 8 May 2018, President Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal and begin re-imposing sanctions that were lifted pursuant to U.S....more
Today, the Trump Administration designated multiple Russian targets, including several wealthy individuals and their companies, as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs). These designations of major companies represent the...more
Yesterday, on October 12, 2017, the U.S. permanently revoked most sanctions against Sudan. This lifting represents the completion of a process that began in January 2017, and was extended in July 2017. ...more
10/13/2017
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Banking Sector ,
Charitable Organizations ,
Commerce Control List ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Medical Devices ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
SDN List ,
State Sponsors of Terrorism ,
Sudan ,
Universities
Effective August 25, 2017, President Trump issued a new Executive Order, (the Order), which targets the Government of Venezuela’s (GOV) and Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A.’s (PdVSA) ability to access capital from the United...more
Ahead of a Constituent Assembly that could re-write the Venezuelan Constitution and dissolve state institutions, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has designated 13 current and former Venezuelan...more
On Friday, February 3, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced it was designating 25 entities and individuals as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) for their involvement in...more
2/14/2017
/ Foreign Policy ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
National Security ,
Nuclear Weapons ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
SDN List ,
Terrorist Threats ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury ,
WMD