US Sanctions French Charities Over Alleged Crypto Transfers to Hamas

TLDR

• OFAC sanctioned two France-based charities and three individuals on October 2 over alleged Hamas financing.
• Treasury says two French fundraisers sent hundreds of thousands of dollars in crypto to a Hamas commander in Gaza.
• The network allegedly raised more than $2 million for Hamas between 2020 and 2026.
• US crypto firms must block assets tied to the sanctioned parties and report them within 10 business days.
• Foreign financial institutions could face secondary sanctions for knowingly helping the network.

The US Treasury Department has sanctioned two charities in France and three people it says helped send cryptocurrency and other funds to Hamas.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control, known as OFAC, added the names to its sanctions list on October 2. The move expands the list of parties that US crypto exchanges and payment firms must screen.

The charities named are Association Baraka and Ensemble C Mieux. The three individuals are Faouzi Barika, Amel Oualid and Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq.

How Treasury Says the Crypto Moved

Treasury alleges that Barika and Oualid, who are both based in France, sent hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency to al-Zaq.

The agency described al-Zaq as a Gaza-based deputy battalion commander in Hamas’ military wing.

According to Treasury, the two fundraisers and their linked groups collected more than $2 million for Hamas between 2020 and 2026.

The agency did not say that the full $2 million moved through digital assets. It kept that wider fundraising total separate from the crypto transfers it tied to Barika and Oualid.

US authorities are tracing digital asset transfers alongside bank transfers and cash as part of efforts to disrupt Hamas funding. The new designations place the sanctioned parties under existing OFAC rules covering property held by US persons or moving through US jurisdiction.

What Crypto Firms Must Do Now

US exchanges, custodians and payment processors must block any property the designated parties have an interest in once it comes under their control. This applies unless an OFAC license or exemption covers it.

The rule also covers companies owned 50% or more, directly or indirectly, by one or more blocked persons. That means compliance teams may need to look beyond the five names Treasury published.

OFAC treats digital assets the same way it treats regular currency and other property under its sanctions rules.

A US-regulated crypto company that finds assets belonging to a blocked person must deny access to them. It must report the property to OFAC within 10 business days, and blocked assets must also be reported each year.

Firms do not have to convert frozen crypto into dollars. Custodians can hold the assets in their current form while keeping sanctioned parties from using or moving them.

The sanctions may also reach beyond the US. Treasury warned that foreign financial institutions could face secondary sanctions if they knowingly handle major transactions for the designated parties.

That warning does not freeze every blockchain transaction linked to the network worldwide. Enforcement depends on jurisdiction, ownership, whether blocked property is involved and, in some cases, what was known about a transaction.

Crypto firms are now watching whether US authorities will name more wallet addresses, intermediaries or entities tied to the network. Any new disclosures could widen screening work and lead exchanges to review past exposure to the alleged fundraising operation.

The post US Sanctions French Charities Over Alleged Crypto Transfers to Hamas appeared first on Blockonomi.