OFAC sb0502
OFAC sanctions tranche of 19 May 2026; 50+ entities, 19 vessels; no Chinese refineries added.
Last refreshed: 21 May 2026
Why did OFAC's biggest Iran tranche deliberately skip Chinese refineries on 19 May?
Timeline for OFAC sb0502
OFAC sb0502: 50 entities, 19 vessels, no refinery
Iran Conflict 2026- What did OFAC sanction on 19 May 2026?
- OFAC's sb0502 action on 19 May 2026 designated over 50 entities and 19 vessels for routing IRGC oil revenues and Iran sanctions evasion. The entities included Amin Exchange and shells in the UAE, Turkey, Hong Kong, and China. No mainland Chinese refineries were added to the SDN list.Source: US Treasury / OFAC
- Why did OFAC not sanction more Chinese refineries after Hengli?
- OFAC's 19 May sb0502 action deliberately excluded mainland Chinese refineries, signalling that the Hengli designation was a calibrated single high-profile action rather than the start of a broader campaign. The exclusion is consistent with the ongoing Trump-Xi diplomatic context.Source: US Treasury / OFAC
- How many entities and vessels did OFAC sanction under sb0502?
- OFAC's 19 May 2026 action sb0502 designated approximately 50 entities and 19 vessels linked to the IRGC's oil export network. The action targeted facilitators, ship managers, and shadow-fleet tankers but stopped short of designating any mainland Chinese refinery.Source: OFAC 19 May 2026
Background
OFAC sb0502 is the US Treasury sanctions action issued on 19 May 2026, designating over 50 entities and 19 vessels for routing IRGC oil revenues and conducting Iran-related sanctions evasion . The action named Amin Exchange and a network of corporate shells registered in the UAE, Turkey, Hong Kong, and mainland China. Notably, it added no mainland Chinese refineries to the Specially Designated Nationals list, a significant calibration given that OFAC's designation of Hengli Petrochemical on 24 April 2026 under press release sb0472 had already triggered MOFCOM's blocking order.
Sb0502 represents the standard OFAC enforcement rhythm alongside the higher-profile General Licence V countdown: smaller-entity designations clearing the shadow fleet and IRGC oil sales network rather than targeting the commodity processor directly. The action follows the same pattern as earlier OFAC tranches in the Iran-conflict-2026 cycle, which have progressively targeted the financial intermediaries and vessel management companies that enable Iranian crude to reach buyers.
The absence of additional mainland Chinese refineries from sb0502 is itself a policy signal: OFAC is maintaining the Hengli designation as an isolated high-profile action rather than beginning a rolling designation campaign against Chinese industrial entities. The 50+ entity count is the largest single OFAC tranche of the 2026 conflict.
