On July 10, 2026, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced a series of Iran-related sanctions designations targeting Iranian financial facilitator Ali Ansari and his financial network, as well as several Iranian exchange houses accused of facilitating transactions for sanctioned Iranian banks. Concurrently, OFAC issued General License Y (“GL Y”), authorizing the temporary wind down of transactions involving Smart Global Limited, a newly designated holding company allegedly controlled by Ansari.…
On June 18, 2026, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued three Venezuela-related general licenses and amended FAQ 595. The most notable development is new General License 59 (“GL 59”), which authorizes certain aircraft safety-related activities for Venezuelan Specially Designated National airline, Conviasa. OFAC also reissued its telecommunications and mail authorization as General License 24A (“GL 24A”), again delayed the effectiveness of the PdVSA 2020 bond authorization through General…
On February 13, 2026, the US Treasury Department’s (“Treasury”) Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced the launch of a new dedicated webpage for the confidential submission of whistleblower tips on fraud, money laundering, and sanctions violations. Based on the press release, The new initiative follows President Trump’s recent efforts to combat the government benefits fraud schemes in Minnesota. Treasury has encouraged whistleblowers to submit tips as soon as possible and to include specific, well-documented information to…
On December 18, 2025, President Trump signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) for Fiscal Year 2026 (P.L. 119-60). A must-pass piece of legislation that funds Department of Defense (“DoD”) operations on an annual basis, the NDAA is a frequent vehicle for trade-related provisions and legislative changes affecting DoD acquisition policies with direct implications for government contractors. The NDAA includes a number of provisions relating to US sanctions, investment security, and supply chain…