Treasury Intensifies Pressure on Shamkhani’s Expansive Illicit Shipping Empire

Washington: Today, the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is intensifying its efforts to disrupt and degrade the illicit shipping and sanctions evasion network of Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani. This action is part of Treasury's ongoing efforts to ramp up economic pressure on the Iranian regime after it resumed destabilizing attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. The Shamkhani network remains a major force behind Iran's oil exports and has expanded into global containerized shipping and commodities trading.According to U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Iranian regime survives on deception, and the Shamkhani network is one of its most profitable engines, as stated by Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. Treasury is shutting down the financial infrastructure that allows the regime to continue its threats to U.S. national security and global shipping.Today's action includes more than 50 individuals, entities, and vessels that enable Shamkhani and the Iranian regime to continue profiting while the Iranian people remain burdened under the economic yoke imposed by their government. Today's action builds on OFAC's April 2026 and July 2025 designation actions targeting the Shamkhani network, and Treasury has now sanctioned more than 200 individuals, entities, and vessels operating under Shamkhani's patronage.Today's action is being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13902, which provides authority to the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to identify and impose sanctions on key sectors of Iran's economy. Today's action also reflects OFAC's ongoing close collaboration with Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Treasury continues to target Iranian oil sales under the President's National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 (NSPM-2).Iranian nationals Hossein Ghorbani Zahed and Mohammad Reza Rahbar Madani, both of whom also hold Dominica passports, have worked as primary financiers for Shamkhani's network, providing it with e xchange house services including access to foreign currency and shell companies based outside of Iran. Madani and Zahed are essential for the network's ability to trade in sanctioned goods and recoup the proceeds.Iranian and Russian dual national Ali Rakhbarmadani, one of Shamkhani's closest business associates, is linked to multiple companies within the network, including sanctioned companies Koban Shipping L.L.C., Crios Shipping L.L.C., and Marvise SMC DMCC. Ali Rakhbarmadani effectively operated as the head of shipping for Shamkhani, handling much of the network's communications with customers and partners.Martin Austin Kaalund, a Danish national, and Alessandra Ronco, an Italian national, both spent years as executives of sanctioned Shamkhani shipping oversight company House of Shipping Investment FZCO, most recently as the global chief financial officer and global chief executive officer, respectively. Kaalund and Ronco played key day-to-day and strategic roles in House of Shipping's operations.In dian national Jijin George and Iranian national Behzad Moghadas are involved in facilitating the operation of vessels within the Shamkhani fleet. George is an employee of a sanctioned company, Teodor Shipping L.L.C., while Gautam Vishavdeep, an Indian national, is a manager within the Shamkhani network, facilitating shipments of Iranian oil.The Shamkhani fleet's reach extends to the Caspian Sea, where it controls a group of container ships and cargo vessels primarily transporting goods between Iran and Russia. OFAC is also sanctioning two tankers operating as part of Shamkhani's fleet: DARIKA and VIRENT.As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property of the designated or blocked persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Violations of U.S. sanctions may result in the imposition of civil or criminal penalties on U.S. and foreign persons.The power and integrity of OFAC sanctions der ive not only from OFAC's ability to designate and add persons to the SDN List but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish but to bring about a positive change in behavior.