- Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Legal Affairs, Arrow Electronics
By 
Aaron Nicodemus2023-02-24T16:45:00
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) marked the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by unveiling a slew of new sanctions against financial services firms and individuals that either support Russia’s war effort or have been judged to be undermining existing U.S. sanctions.
OFAC on Friday announced new sanctions against 22 individuals and 83 entities, taken in coordination with its allies and G7 partners.
“Sanctioned actors have been known to turn to smaller banks as well as wealth management firms in an attempt to evade sanctions as Russia seeks new ways to access the international financial system,” the agency stated in a press release.
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Insurance organization Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange agreed to pay $466,200 as part of a settlement with the Office of Foreign Assets Control addressing alleged sanctioned transactions on behalf of designated Ukrainian-Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg.
The International Investment Bank, a multinational development institution headquartered in Hungary, was designated by the Office of Foreign Assets Control for potentially facilitating the evasion of U.S. sanctions against Russia.
The Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Foreign Assets Control, and Department of Justice issued guidance to highlight common methods bad actors use to evade sanctions and export controls on Russia and how to spot their use.
The EU and U.K. have rushed to commit themselves to intensifying action on sanctions evasion after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, but any compliance managers who believe Trump will make global sanctions compliance easier in 2025 are likely to be disappointed.
With a new political regime ready to take over in the U.S., the effectiveness of sanctions against malign foreign actors like Russia, North Korea, and Iran have come into question. While the European Union and U.K. have increased sanctions pressure, critics have publicly asked: Is it enough?
The U.K. has issued 56 new sanctions against entities and individuals involved with Russia’s war effort, including several private mercenary groups operating in Africa that are connected to the Kremlin.
