Treasury orders MEXC cutoff over $16.7B in alleged illicit flows

The U.S. Treasury’s FinCEN has ordered a cutoff of funds transfers involving crypto exchange MEXC, citing $16.7 billion in alleged illicit flows from May 2021 to May 2026. The order puts U.S. financial institutions between MEXC and the U.S. financial system, with the restrictions set to take effect 30 days after Federal Register publication. According to Treasury’s announcement, the transactions were linked to Russian, Iranian and North Korean sanctions evasion, cybercrime and other illicit activity.

What does FinCEN’s order prohibit?

The order bars covered U.S. financial institutions from transmitting funds to or from MEXC Global, including its overseas subsidiaries, branches, offices and successor entities. FinCEN issued it under Section 9714(a) of the Combating Russian Money Laundering Act, which allows Treasury to prohibit or condition certain transfers involving a foreign financial institution. The order is not yet effective: its text says the date will be 30 days after publication in the Federal Register, and the filed version states that publication is pending. The restriction targets financial intermediaries handling transfers; it does not itself say that MEXC’s exchange has been shut down.

Why does the order cite Russian illicit finance?

FinCEN formally found MEXC to be a primary money-laundering concern in connection with Russian illicit finance, even as Treasury framed the action within its Operation Economic Outcast campaign against Iran. The agency says nearly $1.5 billion of MEXC’s activity was linked to Russian sanctions evasion, including $232 million in direct transactions with entities sanctioned by the U.S., EU or UK. It also says MEXC transacted with sanctioned exchanges Garantex and Grinex as recently as June 2026. Treasury’s announcement says the order relies on Section 9714, whose stated basis is Russian illicit finance.

What supports the $16.7 billion figure?

In its FinCEN order, the agency says it assessed public and non-public information and blockchain data covering May 2021 through May 2026. Beyond the Russian-linked activity, FinCEN identified more than $1 billion in direct transactions with over 40 Iranian crypto exchanges and about $22 million associated with Iran’s central bank and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its Qods Force. The order also attributes at least $1.99 billion in activity to cybercrime actors. These are government findings and allegations underpinning an administrative order; the cited records do not establish a court judgment on the claims.

References

• Treasury’s announcement — home.treasury.gov
• FinCEN order — fincen.gov