Woofun AI reports that the U.S. Treasury has imposed sanctions on Persian Gulf Marine Insurance Company and HormuzSafe Marine Services Authority (Hormuz Safe) for operating a coercive maritime insurance scheme targeting vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, with proceeds directed to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) characterized the arrangement as extortion rather than legitimate insurance, noting that policies covered risks like vessel seizures which are "overwhelmingly created by Iran itself." Structurally, Hormuz Safe was developed by the Ministry of Economy to accept payment in Bitcoin and other digital assets, a mechanism designed to bypass Western sanctions while extracting funds from commercial shipping.

Per Woofun AI, the scheme gained visibility after CoinDesk reported its existence on May 18, citing state-linked Fars News accounts that described an economy ministry proposal for bitcoin-settled marine insurance. At that time, the platform displayed only a landing page, leaving operational status and actual usage by cargo owners unverified, despite Fars News claiming the model could generate more than $10 billion without providing calculation methodology. The policies were approved by the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, an IRGC-backed body designated in May.

Both entities were sanctioned under an executive order covering Iran's petroleum and petrochemical sectors, barring U.S. persons from dealing with them and exposing foreign firms to secondary sanctions, with bitcoin payments carrying the same legal exposure as traditional bank transfers. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that "with its economy in freefall and inflation in the triple digits, the regime is desperate for cash," highlighting the financial desperation driving these measures. This action underscores the geopolitical tension in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical energy chokepoint where traffic has thinned during weeks of U.S. strikes on Iran that have kept oil prices elevated.