The US Treasury Department has sanctioned two charities based in France and three individuals it says helped channel cryptocurrency and other funds to Hamas. The action was carried out on October 2 by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which added the names to its sanctions list. The designations expand the roster of parties that US crypto exchanges and payment firms are required to screen.

The designated charities are Association Baraka and Ensemble C Mieux. The three individuals are Faouzi Barika, Amel Oualid and Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq. Treasury published the designations through its recent actions notice and an accompanying press release.

How Treasury Says the Crypto Moved

According to the Treasury Department, Barika and Oualid, 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.

Treasury further alleges that 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 the wider fundraising total separate from the crypto transfers it tied specifically to Barika and Oualid.

US authorities are tracing digital asset transfers alongside bank transfers and cash as part of broader efforts to disrupt Hamas funding. The new designations place the sanctioned parties under existing OFAC that cover property held by US persons or moving through US jurisdiction. Public blockchain ledgers record transaction flows in permanently visible form, and OFAC has previously listed digital wallet addresses directly on its sanctions list so that automated screening systems can flag them.

What Crypto Firms Must Do Now

US exchanges, custodians and payment processors must block any property in which the designated parties hold an interest once it comes under their control, unless an OFAC license or exemption applies. The obligation also extends to 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 also enforces these obligations on a strict-liability basis, meaning firms can face civil penalties for handling blocked property even if they were unaware of a counterparty's status.

OFAC treats digital assets the same way it treats regular currency and other property under its sanctions rules. A US-regulated crypto company that identifies assets belonging to a blocked person must deny access to them and report the property to OFAC within 10 business days. Blocked assets must also be reported on an annual basis.

Firms are not required 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 United States. 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.

This article is based on reporting first published by Blockonomi.