Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps controls the Strait of Hormuz. It has been forcing commercial vessels to purchase mandatory maritime "insurance" to transit the waterway. The processing of those payments fell to two Iranian companies: HormuzSafe Marine Services Authority and Persian Gulf Marine Insurance Company. On July 29, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned both of them.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in announcing the sanctions, "The United States will not allow Iran to hold global commerce hostage or use international shipping to finance the IRGC's terrorism, aggression, and repression."
The Treasury also sanctioned eight companies operating "shadow fleet" vessels transporting Iranian oil.
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The sanctions follow a war that started in late February 2026 when the U.S. and Israel launched a war on Iran. During that conflict, Iran effectively shuttered the Strait of Hormuz, causing global energy prices to soar.
Claire O'Neill McCleskey, who previously served at the Treasury Department and now co-leads the sanctions consultancy Clarity Compliance Consulting, commented: "These new sanctions are the US government's way of doubling down on the same message it has been sending to charterers and shipowners for months: pay Iran to for safe passage through the strait and you may be sanctioned."
Thomas Warrick, a veteran counterterrorism official formerly with the Department of Homeland Security, remarked: "Sanctions will make it difficult or impossible for freighters to pay tolls in the guise of insurance."
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical maritime chokepoint, with roughly 20 percent of the world's oil passing through daily. The new sanctions aim to cut off revenue streams that the IRGC uses to fund its operations, and they also serve as a warning to shipowners and charterers that facilitating such payments could expose them to legal and financial penalties.
The announcement of these sanctions coincides with the White House's effort to re-engage Iran in diplomatic talks, following the collapse of a tentative accord in early July that led to renewed fighting. After a short pause, combat resumed on Tuesday as both sides exchanged fire. On Wednesday, Trump stated that the United States would deliver a strong response to a strike that had hit a Jordanian military base. In a phone conversation with Fox News, Trump stated, "They're going to get a beating."
The conflict began in late February 2026 with a series of tit-for-tat strikes, escalating into a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran's Revolutionary Guard. Oil prices spiked to unprecedented levels, disrupting global energy markets and prompting the U.S. to deploy additional naval forces to the region. The imposition of insurance fees by Iranian firms emerged as a new tactic to generate revenue.
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