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| agency_name = Office of Foreign Assets Control | | agency_name = Office of Foreign Assets Control | ||
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| seal = Logo of the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).jpg | | seal = Seal of the United States Department of the Treasury.svg <!--Logo of the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).jpg--> | ||
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As a component of the [[United States Department of the Treasury|U.S. Treasury Department]], OFAC operates under the [[Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence]] and is primarily composed of intelligence targeters and lawyers. While many of OFAC's targets are broadly set by the [[White House]], most individual cases are developed as a result of investigations by OFAC's Office of Global Targeting (OGT).<ref name="reuters.com">Yukhananov, Anna, and Warren Strobel, [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-sanctions-insight-idUSBREA3D1O820140415 "After Success on Iran, U.S. Treasury's Sanctions Team Faces New Challenges"], [[Reuters]], April 14, 2014.</ref> | As a component of the [[United States Department of the Treasury|U.S. Treasury Department]], OFAC operates under the [[Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence]] and is primarily composed of intelligence targeters and lawyers. While many of OFAC's targets are broadly set by the [[White House]], most individual cases are developed as a result of investigations by OFAC's Office of Global Targeting (OGT).<ref name="reuters.com">Yukhananov, Anna, and Warren Strobel, [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-sanctions-insight-idUSBREA3D1O820140415 "After Success on Iran, U.S. Treasury's Sanctions Team Faces New Challenges"], [[Reuters]], April 14, 2014.</ref> | ||
Sometimes described as one of the "most powerful yet unknown" government agencies,<ref name="reuters.com"/><ref>Rubenfeld, Samuel. [https://blogs.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2014/02/05/ofac-rises-as-sanctions-become-a-major-policy-tool "OFAC Rises as Sanctions Become A Major Policy Tool"], ''[[Wall Street Journal]]'', February 5, 2014</ref> OFAC was founded in 1950 and has the power to levy significant penalties against entities that defy its directives, including imposing fines, freezing assets, and barring parties from operating in the United States. In 2014, OFAC reached a record $963 million settlement with the French bank [[BNP Paribas]], which was a portion of an $8.9 billion penalty imposed in relation to the case as a whole.<ref>[http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/jl2447.aspx "Treasury Reaches Largest Ever Sanctions-Related Settlement with BNP Paribas SA for $963 Million"], U.S. Department of the Treasury, June 30, 2014</ref> | Sometimes described as one of the "most powerful yet unknown" government agencies,<ref name="reuters.com"/><ref>Rubenfeld, Samuel. [https://blogs.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2014/02/05/ofac-rises-as-sanctions-become-a-major-policy-tool "OFAC Rises as Sanctions Become A Major Policy Tool"], ''[[Wall Street Journal]]'', February 5, 2014</ref> OFAC was founded in 1950 and has the power to levy significant penalties against entities that defy its directives, including imposing fines, freezing assets, and barring parties from operating in the United States. In 2014, OFAC reached a record $963 million settlement with the French bank [[BNP Paribas]], which was a portion of an $8.9 billion penalty imposed in relation to the case as a whole.<ref>{{Cite web|date=June 30, 2014|title=U.S. imposes record fine on BNP in sanctions warning to banks|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bnp-paribas-settlement-idUSKBN0F52HA20140701|website=Reuters}}</ref><ref>[http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/jl2447.aspx "Treasury Reaches Largest Ever Sanctions-Related Settlement with BNP Paribas SA for $963 Million"], U.S. Department of the Treasury, June 30, 2014</ref> | ||
==History== | ==History== | ||
<!--This paragraph is derived mostly from https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/265.html#265.1 --> | <!--This paragraph is derived mostly from https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/265.html#265.1 --> | ||
Involvement of the U.S. Department of the Treasury in economic sanctions against foreign states dates to the [[War of 1812]], when Secretary [[Albert Gallatin]] administered sanctions against [[ | Involvement of the U.S. Department of the Treasury in economic sanctions against foreign states dates to the [[War of 1812]], when Secretary [[Albert Gallatin]] administered sanctions against the [[United Kingdom]] in retaliation for the [[impressment]] of American sailors.<ref name="Treasury's War book"/><ref name="FAQ">{{cite web | url=http://www.treasury.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/faq/answer.shtml#2 | title=Frequently Asked Questions | publisher=Office of Foreign Assets Control | access-date=2007-09-17 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071018063052/http://treasury.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/faq/answer.shtml#2 | archive-date=2007-10-18 }}</ref> | ||
The Division of Foreign Assets Control, the immediate predecessor to OFAC, was established in December 1950. Predecessor agencies of the Division of Foreign Assets Control include Foreign Funds Control, which existed from 1940 to 1947, and the Office of International Finance (1947 to 1950). OFAC's earliest predecessor, Foreign Funds Control, was established by [[Executive Order 8389]] as a unit of the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury on April 10, 1940. The authority to establish Foreign Funds Control was derived from the [[Trading with the Enemy Act 1917]]. Among other operations, Foreign Funds Control administered wartime import controls over enemy assets and restrictions on trade with enemy states. It also participated in administering the [[Proclaimed List of Certain Blocked Nationals]], or the "Black List", and took [[censuses]] of foreign-owned assets in the United States and American-owned assets abroad. Foreign Funds Control was abolished in 1947, with its functions transferred to the newly established [[Office of International Finance]] (OIF). In 1948, OIF activities relating to blocked foreign funds were transferred to the Office of Alien Property, an agency within the [[United States Department of Justice|Department of Justice]].<ref name="Records">{{cite web | title=Records of the Office of Foreign Assets Control | publisher=The National Archives | access-date = 2007-09-17| url=https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/265.html#265.1}}</ref> | The Division of Foreign Assets Control, the immediate predecessor to OFAC, was established in December 1950. Predecessor agencies of the Division of Foreign Assets Control include Foreign Funds Control, which existed from 1940 to 1947, and the Office of International Finance (1947 to 1950). OFAC's earliest predecessor, Foreign Funds Control, was established by [[Executive Order 8389]] as a unit of the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury on April 10, 1940. The authority to establish Foreign Funds Control was derived from the [[Trading with the Enemy Act 1917]]. Among other operations, Foreign Funds Control administered wartime import controls over enemy assets and restrictions on trade with enemy states. It also participated in administering the [[Proclaimed List of Certain Blocked Nationals]], or the "Black List", and took [[censuses]] of foreign-owned assets in the United States and American-owned assets abroad. Foreign Funds Control was abolished in 1947, with its functions transferred to the newly established [[Office of International Finance]] (OIF). In 1948, OIF activities relating to blocked foreign funds were transferred to the Office of Alien Property, an agency within the [[United States Department of Justice|Department of Justice]].<ref name="Records">{{cite web | title=Records of the Office of Foreign Assets Control | publisher=The National Archives | access-date = 2007-09-17| url=https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/265.html#265.1}}</ref> | ||
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==Authority and activities== | ==Authority and activities== | ||
[[Image:Treasury Annex.JPG|thumb|right|OFAC is headquartered in the | [[Image:Treasury Annex.JPG|thumb|right|OFAC is headquartered in the [[Freedman's Bank Building]], located across the street from the [[Treasury Building (Washington, D.C.)|Treasury Building]] in [[Washington, D.C.]]]] | ||
In addition to the [[Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917|Trading with the Enemy Act]] and the various [[state of emergency|national emergencies]] currently in effect, OFAC derives its authority from a variety of [[U.S. federal laws]] regarding [[embargo]]es and economic sanctions.<ref>For example {{Executive Order|12957}}, {{Executive Order|12938}}, etc.</ref> | In addition to the [[Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917|Trading with the Enemy Act]] and the various [[state of emergency|national emergencies]] currently in effect, OFAC derives its authority from a variety of [[U.S. federal laws]] regarding [[embargo]]es and economic sanctions.<ref>For example {{Executive Order|12957}}, {{Executive Order|12938}}, etc.</ref> | ||
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==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{Library resources box}} | {{Library resources box}} | ||
*{{Commonscatinline}} | |||
*{{Official website|https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/office-of-foreign-assets-control-sanctions-programs-and-information}} | *{{Official website|https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/office-of-foreign-assets-control-sanctions-programs-and-information}} | ||