In a long-awaited decision involving the cryptocurrency “mixer” Tornado Cash, a U.S. district court on August 17, 2023, upheld the broad authority of the Department of the Treasury’s (Treasury’s) Office of Foreign Assets...more
On August 16, 2023, OFAC announced a $660,594 settlement with Construction Specialties Inc. (CS) for alleged violations of the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations (ITSR). OFAC found that CS’s wholly controlled...more
9/6/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Corporate Governance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employees ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Money Laundering ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Sanctions ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
Whistleblowers
In light of the recent referendums and purported annexation by Russia of four territories of Ukraine on September 30, 2022, the United States, United Kingdom and European Union have expanded measures and provided additional...more
10/14/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine
Since the publication of our March 24, 2022, and March 17, 2022, client alerts, the U.S., U.K. and European Union, among other allied nations, have imposed additional sanctions and export controls on key elements of the...more
5/2/2022
/ Blocking Sanctions ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
UK
On March 8, 2022, President Joe Biden issued Executive Order (E.O.) 14066, which bans the import of Russian oil, gas and other energy products into the United States and imposes sweeping prohibitions on new U.S. investment in...more
Since the publication of our February 26, 2022, client alert, the United States, United Kingdom and the European Union, among other allied nations, have imposed additional sanctions and export controls on key elements of the...more
3/10/2022
/ Belarus ,
Blocking Sanctions ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
SWIFT ,
Ukraine
The United States, United Kingdom and the European Union, among other allies, have moved swiftly in response to the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine. Merely hours after Russia’s announcement on February 21, 2022, that...more
The U.S. government recently took several actions involving the Venezuela- and Russia-related sanctions. On May 21, 2018, following the re-election of President Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump issued an executive order...more
On May 1, 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued General Licenses 12B and 13A authorizing additional transactions and activities involving certain persons subject to the...more
On April 23, 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued Ukraine- and Russia-related General Licenses 12A and 14, and additional guidance to further minimize immediate...more
On April 6, 2018, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against seven Russian oligarchs, 12 companies owned or controlled by these oligarchs, 17 senior Russian government...more
4/13/2018
/ Blocked Person ,
CAATSA ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Secondary Sanctions ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Ukraine
In recent weeks, the U.S. government has taken a number of significant steps to implement sanctions on Russia under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which President Donald Trump signed into...more
11/9/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
CAATSA ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Energy Exploration ,
Energy Sector ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Pipelines ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Section 232 ,
Trump Administration ,
Ukraine ,
US State Departments
Pursuant to the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 (INARA), the president is required to make certifications every 90 days that Iran is complying with its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action...more
10/24/2017
/ Decertify ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 (INARA) ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
Nuclear Weapons ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
P5+1 Nations ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Trump Administration
On October 14, 2016, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced further amendments to ease U.S. sanctions and...more
10/28/2016
/ Aviation Industry ,
Barack Obama ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Cuba ,
Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Financial Institutions ,
General Licenses ,
Humanitarian Assistance ,
Imports ,
International Travel ,
Medical Research ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Pharmaceutical Industry
In the wake of the Panama Papers controversy, the U.S. government has taken major steps this month to promote financial transparency. First, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) finalized its proposed rule issued...more
5/17/2016
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banks ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Due Diligence ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Ownership Requirements ,
Popular ,
Transparency ,
White Collar Crimes
On January 16, 2016, the International Atomic Energy Agency verified that Iran had complied with the nuclear-related technical aspects of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action it had to complete before the first phase of...more
1/28/2016
/ Banking Sector ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Foreign Entities ,
IAEA ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
Nuclear Weapons ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
SDN List
On April 1, 2015, President Barack Obama issued an executive order (the Order) authorizing sanctions against foreign individuals or entities found to be responsible for certain malicious cyberattacks. Under the Order, the...more