What the Restrictions Cover

• Binance announced it will stop processing transactions involving 16 named crypto-asset service providers. Transactions that touch a flagged entity may be held for compliance review, rejected, or result in account restrictions .
• Bitget is applying enhanced compliance controls to the same set of 16 entities. Any transaction that directly or indirectly involves a flagged platform may be reviewed, rejected, or trigger account-level restrictions .
• The bans cover both inbound and outbound transfers — users cannot send or receive funds with the restricted platforms through either exchange.

Timeline: Three-Phase Rollout Through August 2026

Regulatory Basis: Two Sanctions Regimes in One Action

The restrictions stem from two separate but concurrent government actions:

EU's 21st Russia Sanctions Package (July 23, 2026): The European Union added 14 crypto-related service providers to its transaction-ban annexes, accusing them of significantly frustrating Russia-related sanctions. The measure generally bars people and companies in the EU from dealing directly or indirectly with the listed exchanges, effective August 23 . The UK had already designated EXMO and Huobi Global S.A. under its own Russia sanctions regime in May 2026 .

U.S. OFAC Designations (August 7, 2026): The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Shelbit (registered as Shelbit General Trading LLC) and Aban Tether Exchange for facilitating Iran-linked sanctions evasion, including money laundering through crypto channels connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps .

Binance's 2023 Settlement Legacy: Binance remains under a five-year U.S.-appointed compliance monitorship following its $4.3 billion settlement with FinCEN and OFAC in November 2023 for prior sanctions violations . A February 2026 U.S. Senate letter alleged Binance allowed $1.7 billion in Iran-linked transactions, prompting ongoing investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and Dubai's VARA regulator .

Industry Impact: A Widening Sanctions Divide

• Global scope: The restrictions apply to all Binance and Bitget users worldwide, not just those in the EU or U.S., effectively ring-fencing the flagged platforms from two of the largest crypto exchanges by volume .
• Isolation of HTX: HTX is a major exchange with significant trading volume; being cut off from Binance and Bitget severely limits its liquidity access and on-ramp/off-ramp capabilities for a large portion of the crypto market.
• Precedent effect: Other major exchanges — including Gate.io and others — have already begun reporting on the actions and are likely to adopt similar compliance lists to avoid regulatory risk, further fragmenting the global crypto market into "sanctions-compliant" and "sanctions-exposed" tiers .
• Ongoing regulatory scrutiny: The actions come amid heightened U.S. Senate scrutiny of Binance's Iran-related activity, a DOJ investigation into Iran's use of Binance for sanctions evasion, and continued monitoring by Dubai's VARA regulator regarding Shelbit's unlicensed operations .

What the Restrictions Cover

• Binance announced it will stop processing transactions involving 16 named crypto-asset service providers. Transactions that touch a flagged entity may be held for compliance review, rejected, or result in account restrictions .
• Bitget is applying enhanced compliance controls to the same set of 16 entities. Any transaction that directly or indirectly involves a flagged platform may be reviewed, rejected, or trigger account-level restrictions .
• The bans cover both inbound and outbound transfers — users cannot send or receive funds with the restricted platforms through either exchange.

Timeline: Three-Phase Rollout Through August 2026

Regulatory Basis: Two Sanctions Regimes in One Action

The restrictions stem from two separate but concurrent government actions:

EU's 21st Russia Sanctions Package (July 23, 2026): The European Union added 14 crypto-related service providers to its transaction-ban annexes, accusing them of significantly frustrating Russia-related sanctions. The measure generally bars people and companies in the EU from dealing directly or indirectly with the listed exchanges, effective August 23 . The UK had already designated EXMO and Huobi Global S.A. under its own Russia sanctions regime in May 2026 .

U.S. OFAC Designations (August 7, 2026): The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Shelbit (registered as Shelbit General Trading LLC) and Aban Tether Exchange for facilitating Iran-linked sanctions evasion, including money laundering through crypto channels connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps .

Binance's 2023 Settlement Legacy: Binance remains under a five-year U.S.-appointed compliance monitorship following its $4.3 billion settlement with FinCEN and OFAC in November 2023 for prior sanctions violations . A February 2026 U.S. Senate letter alleged Binance allowed $1.7 billion in Iran-linked transactions, prompting ongoing investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and Dubai's VARA regulator .

Industry Impact: A Widening Sanctions Divide

• Global scope: The restrictions apply to all Binance and Bitget users worldwide, not just those in the EU or U.S., effectively ring-fencing the flagged platforms from two of the largest crypto exchanges by volume .
• Isolation of HTX: HTX is a major exchange with significant trading volume; being cut off from Binance and Bitget severely limits its liquidity access and on-ramp/off-ramp capabilities for a large portion of the crypto market.
• Precedent effect: Other major exchanges — including Gate.io and others — have already begun reporting on the actions and are likely to adopt similar compliance lists to avoid regulatory risk, further fragmenting the global crypto market into "sanctions-compliant" and "sanctions-exposed" tiers .
• Ongoing regulatory scrutiny: The actions come amid heightened U.S. Senate scrutiny of Binance's Iran-related activity, a DOJ investigation into Iran's use of Binance for sanctions evasion, and continued monitoring by Dubai's VARA regulator regarding Shelbit's unlicensed operations .