The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added individuals to the Specially Designated Nationals list on April 7 (here) and 8 (here).
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control notified the public on April 6 of a new formatting model for the Consolidated Sanctions List data files (here). The format is more advanced than previous XML formats, and it adheres to a United Nations-established standard, the agency said in a compilation of FAQs (here). The Consolidated Sanctions List draws together non-Specially Designated Nationals List entries, but both lists may ultimately share entries, OFAC says (here). The new file format is already in place with the SDN, said OFAC.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control deleted an entry from the Specially Designated Nationals list on April 3 (here).
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added individuals and companies to the Specially Designated Nationals List, and dozens of Cuba-related entries in recent days (here and here).
Paypal agreed to settle in recent days a dispute with the Treasury Department over alleged, wide-ranging violations of the U.S. sanctions regime through the company’s facilitation of financial transactions. Paypal pledged to pay the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control more than $7.5 million, but the company didn’t admit to or deny the accusations, which included violations of nearly every major U.S. sanctions law, such as those against Iran, Sudan and Cuba. The company will have to report to OFAC in six months on its sanctions compliance programs, the settlement said (here).
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added an individual and entity to the Specially Designated Nationals list on March 18 (here):
Commerzbank will pay the Treasury Department $257 million as part of a settlement over sanctions violations, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said (here). The bank hid transactions to Iranian financial institutions, and routed such transactions through the U.S. from 2005-2010, said OFAC. The firm violated several sanctions regimes, the agency said.
The Treasury Department leveled another batch of Ukraine-related sanctions against a number of individuals and two companies on March 11, in accordance with President Barack Obama’s Executive Order 13660 (here). Secretary of State John Kerry threatened more sanctions in late February, after the U.S. accused Russia of continuing to fuel conflict in Ukraine in the face of a ceasefire accord (see 1502220005). Assistant State Secretary Victoria Nuland told Congress on March 10 Russia and Ukrainian separatists are maintaining a “reign of terror” in the Crimean region and eastern Ukraine, even as the Ukrainian conflict moves further into its second year (here). Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control blocked property for the following individuals and added them to the Specially Designated Nationals List (Treasury didn’t list nationalities for several of the individuals):
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control made changes to the Specially Designated Nationals List on Feb. 24 (here) and Feb. 26 (here).
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added an individual and entity to the Specially Designated Nationals list on Feb. 17 (here).