MEXC’s U.S. Money Pipes Just Got Cut Over a $16B Illicit-Flow Claim

The U.S. Treasury Department has moved to sever crypto exchange MEXC Global from the American financial system, accusing it of facilitating at least $16 billion in illicit transactions linked to Iran, North Korea and Russia. The Friday order, issued through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, bars U.S. financial institutions from processing funds transfers to or from the exchange once it takes effect 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.

The action forms part of Operation Economic Outcast. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, “Financial institutions cannot have it both ways: Either you support the Iranian regime, or you have access to the U.S. financial system,” adding that the department would continue severing the regime’s “economic lifelines” and attempts to use digital assets to evade sanctions. MEXC, one of the world’s 20 largest crypto exchanges, was described as a major conduit for sanctions evasion and cybercrime.

Founded in 2018, MEXC processes more than $1 billion in daily transactions, holds around $5 billion in reserves and offers more than 3,000 tokens, according to FinCEN. Between May 2021 and May 2026, the platform moved at least $16 billion connected to illicit activity, including nearly $1.5 billion tied to Russian sanctions evasion and $232 million in direct transactions with sanctioned entities. FinCEN also named MEXC a “primary money laundering concern” over Russian illicit finance.

Despite publicly claiming anti-money-laundering controls and barring users in places such as Iran and North Korea, FinCEN said MEXC’s compliance had “severe deficiencies.” The exchange continued transacting with sanctioned Russian exchange Garantex and its successor Grinex as recently as June 2026, more than four years after Garantex was first designated. MEXC also processed roughly $200 million linked to the A7A5 stablecoin and about $22 million benefiting Iran’s central bank and its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Treasury’s broader campaign has expanded sanctions powers against Iran’s digital asset sector. Last month, the department designated Russia’s A7 Network a transnational criminal organization and proposed cutting its front companies off from U.S. finance, flagging more than $179 billion in transactions through its ruble-backed A7A5 token, much of it routed through Garantex and Grinex. In a campaign announced Monday that Bessent dubbed Economic D-Day, the Office of Foreign Assets Control issued five sectoral determinations under Executive Order 13902 covering digital assets, technology, gold, aviation and shipping, allowing OFAC to designate foreign persons operating in or providing services to Iran’s digital asset sector.