Blockchain Legal Resource

The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) settled with BitPay, Inc. for $507,375 to resolve 2,102 apparent violations of multiple US sanctions programs for allowing individuals located in sanctioned jurisdictions to use digital currency on its platform to transact with merchants in the United States and elsewhere.

This is the second OFAC enforcement action against a digital currency services provider published in a two-month period. Companies providing digital currency services, like all financial service providers, should be aware of sanctions risks associated with providing such services. This action emphasizes the importance of developing and implementing tailored, risk-based sanctions compliance procedures sufficient to ensure that companies do not deal with blocked persons or engage in transactions prohibited by US sanctions.

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