US Treasury cuts off MEXC over alleged $16B in illicit transactions

The US Treasury bureau FinCEN on Friday ordered US financial institutions to stop processing transfers involving MEXC Global.

The US Department of Treasury on Friday issued an order to cut cryptocurrency exchange MEXC Global off from the US’ financial system after accusing it of facilitating at least $16 billion in transactions linked to sanctions evasion, cybercrime and other illicit activity.

The Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) asserted that MEXC handled transactions involving sanctioned groups in Iran, Russia and North Korea between May 2021 and May 2026. This included around $1.5 billion in transactions linked to Russian sanctions evasion, according to the official press release.

The order effectively bans US financial institutions from processing money transfers involving MEXC and will take effect 30 days after it is published in the Federal Register. 

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