US Declares "Economic D-Day" Against Iran — Secondary Sanctions Broadened to Five New Sectors

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a sweeping expansion of US secondary sanctions against Iran on August 25, describing the campaign as "economic asphyxiation" as the US-Israel-Iran conflict approaches its six-month mark. OFAC added sanctions on approximately 60 individuals, entities, and vessels targeting Iran's oil shipping network, ballistic and nuclear procurement networks, a designated cyber group, and financial intermediaries across UAE, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Switzerland, and Malaysia. Critically, Bessent expanded the scope of secondary sanctions — meaning non-US parties transacting in these sectors risk being cut off from the US financial system — to five newly covered sectors: digital assets, gold, technology, aviation, and shipping. Chinese financial institutions suspected of facilitating Iranian crude purchases were conspicuously absent from the list, with Bessent declining to name which countries face future secondary tariff action or when; this deliberate ambiguity is itself a pressure instrument, creating uncertainty that tends to drive overcompliance in financial institutions globally. Law firms advising clients with any counterparty exposure in these sectors — particularly in energy trading, shipping finance, and technology supply chains — face heightened due diligence obligations immediately.