About $9 billion in potential Iranian shadow-banking activity passed through U.S. correspondent accounts in 2024, showing how money connected to Tehran continued moving through the American financial system despite years of sanctions designed to restrict Iran's access to dollars.
The transactions were identified by the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network through reports filed by American financial institutions. Foreign shell companies accounted for about $5 billion of the activity, while dozens of foreign oil companies that appeared to be Iranian front companies transacted roughly $4 billion, FinCEN said in an analysis of the 2024 activity.
