Treasury Conducting “Operation Economic Outcast” To Financially Isolate Iran

Overview

The US Department of the Treasury (Treasury) has opened one of its most sweeping sanctions campaigns against Iran in recent years: “Operation Economic Outcast.” Below is an overview of certain actions taken by Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to date in support of this initiative, which are discussed in greater detail in the following sections.

In depth

On August 24, 2026, Treasury launched Operation Economic Outcast, a coordinated, whole-of-Treasury effort to sever Iran’s global financial, trade, and logistics connections. In announcing the campaign, Treasury put countries around the world on notice that the US government expects immediate action to curb US-prohibited, Iran-related activities, warning that persons facilitating money laundering or sanctions evasion on Iran’s behalf will be cut off from the US financial system. Treasury has since moved at an unusual pace, deploying new secondary sanctions