UK to Dissolve Crypto Exchange Accused of Aiding Iranian Sanctions Evasion

Britain’s institution register, Companies House, has moved to dissolve Zedxion Exchange Ltd., a cryptocurrency level accused of processing funds for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), according to a notice published connected its website.

The enactment follows U.S. sanctions imposed successful January by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which designated Zedxion and a related entity, Zedcex, for their alleged relation successful enabling Iran to evade sanctions and for links to sanctioned financier Babak Zanjani.

Companies House said the shutdown was related to “information oregon a connection successful an exertion for incorporation that is misleading, mendacious oregon deceptive.” Investigators for the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project antecedently found that Zedxion’s listed manager and idiosyncratic with important control, Elizabeth Newman—described successful filings arsenic a Dominican national—was apt a fictitious identity. The institution was besides reported to person utilized a banal representation to correspond Newman successful promotional materials.

Blockchain analytics steadfast TRM Labs found that Zedxion and its sister level Zedcex processed astir $1 cardinal successful funds linked to the IRGC, accounting for astir 56% of their full transaction volume. That stock roseate arsenic precocious arsenic 87% successful 2024, erstwhile IRGC-linked flows reached astir $619.1 million, earlier declining to astir 48% successful 2025 arsenic different enactment increased.

Zedxion Exchange Ltd. was incorporated successful May 2021. In October that year, an idiosyncratic named “Babak Morteza” was listed arsenic some manager and idiosyncratic with important control. Companies House records amusement that the identifying details associated with that sanction lucifer those of Babak Zanjani, an Iranian businessman agelong accused of sanctions evasion. Companies House filings bespeak that “Babak Morteza” ceased to beryllium listed arsenic a idiosyncratic with important power successful August 2022. Newman was past appointed arsenic a manager the aforesaid month.

Zanjani was antecedently sanctioned by the U.S. and European Union successful 2013 for laundering billions of dollars successful lipid gross connected behalf of Iranian authorities entities, including the IRGC. He was aboriginal convicted successful Iran successful 2016 for embezzlement of authorities lipid funds and sentenced to death, though that condemnation was commuted successful 2024 aft helium repaid funds.

By 2025, Zanjani had re-emerged publically with links to regime-aligned economical projects. He besides runs DotOne Holding Group, a conglomerate spanning cryptocurrency, overseas exchange, logistics, aviation and telecommunications, each sectors that reflector infrastructure utilized successful sanctions evasion networks. He has publically advocated for blockchain-based fiscal systems successful Iran, claiming engagement successful efforts to modulation parts of the country’s banking infrastructure onto specified technology.

Iran and crypto sanctions evasion

Iran has established a wide-ranging infrastructure leveraging crypto to bypass planetary sanctions, with blockchain analytics steadfast Chainalysis reporting that illicit cryptocurrency addresses linked to the IRGC received astatine slightest $154 billion successful integer assets past year—a year-on-year summation of 162%.

In the aftermath of past month’s associated U.S.-Israeli airstrikes connected Iran, Chainalysis reported immoderate $10.3 cardinal successful cryptoasset outflows recorded betwixt February 28 and March 2, though it was incapable to find however overmuch of the enactment was linked to state-aligned actors repositioning funds.

Companies House is opening to workout expanded powers nether the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 to query and region fishy accusation from the register, including mandatory individuality verification for directors and beneficial owners introduced successful precocious 2025. It is portion of a broader effort to forestall misuse of the UK firm register.

Since March 2024, the registrar has been capable to query and region suspicious accusation and necessitate companies to supply a registered email address. From November 2025, each directors and radical with important power person had to verify their identities, and companies indispensable corroborate they are formed for lawful purposes.