The U.S. Escalates Financial Pressure on Iran: Launches "Economic Isolation Initiative," Includes Cryptocurrency and Four Other Sectors in Secondary Sanctions

BlockBeats News, August 25th - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held a press conference today, announcing the initiation of an "Economic Isolation Action" against Iran to "completely cut off all other options for the Iranian regime." The full content of the press conference is as follows: The U.S. Treasury Department will impose sanctions on nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels related to Iran, involving nuclear, missile, cyber, and oil networks, and will potentially impose secondary sanctions on five industries: digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping.

Yellen explicitly stated that any entity facilitating money laundering for Iran will be removed from the U.S. dollar system, and "any economic dealings with Iran will subject the relevant parties to comprehensive U.S. sanctions." Countries must, within a specified timeframe, close activities identified by the Treasury Department, including closing Iranian overseas bank branches; otherwise, the U.S. will take unilateral action through its financial power. Yellen warned not to underestimate the impact of secondary sanctions and revealed that a major financial institution will be sanctioned this weekend due to Iran-related issues. The U.S. also revoked the designation of the Syrian HTS as a terrorist organization and lifted Syria's designation as a "state sponsor of terrorism."

During the press conference, Yellen also clarified the Treasury's bond buyback plan: The U.S. has not purchased any bonds yet, and the next operation will be on September 9th, while regular bond auction plans will continue. This statement aims to dispel market concerns about the Treasury Department's intervention pace.

Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Kenny responded to Trump's threat of a 50% auto tariff, stating that retaliatory tariffs would be "highly targeted" and accused Trump of "wanting to decimate our key industries on his terms." Yellen, on the other hand, stated that Trump hopes Canada can sit down for sincere negotiations.

The signals released throughout the entire press conference were highly intense: a comprehensive escalation of financial pressure on Iran, simultaneous advancement of trade pressure on allies, and a cautious pace in the bond market operations.