The United States government has sanctioned a Lagos-based Bureau De Change (BDC) operator, Mukhtar Muhammad, and three companies linked to him for allegedly facilitating financial transactions for the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the sanctions on Monday. The agency accused Muhammad, also known as Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad, of helping move funds for the terrorist group through currency exchange businesses operating in Lagos.
OFAC also sanctioned Nine To Nine Exchange Bureau De Change Limited, Generation Currency Bureau De Change Limited, and Manhattan Bureau De Change Limited.
The agency said Muhammad owns or controls the three firms. It alleged that he used them to transfer money on behalf of ISWAP and support the group’s activities.
According to OFAC, Muhammad played a key role in ISWAP’s financial network. The agency said the transactions helped the group move funds across regions where it operates.
ISWAP remains one of the deadliest extremist groups in West Africa. The group emerged from a split within Boko Haram and has carried out numerous attacks across Nigeria’s North-east and the Lake Chad region.
The sanctions formed part of a broader U.S. effort to disrupt financial networks linked to ISIS worldwide.
OFAC also designated Miloud Abderrahmane, whom it described as a France-based ISIS financial facilitator. The agency further sanctioned Abdelhakim Boukich, a Syria-based financier who owns and controls Bitcoin Xchange, a money services business.
In addition, OFAC sanctioned Mohamad Alhmidan. The Treasury Department had previously designated him in 2016. Officials said he owns and controls Spider Gayrimenkul Ve Genel Ticaret Limited Sirketi, a money services company based in Türkiye.
The U.S. agency also blacklisted Bitcoin Xchange, Spider Gayrimenkul Ve Genel Ticaret Limited Sirketi, and Alkaram Danismanlik Gayrimenkul Ic Ve Dis Genel Ticaret Limited Sirketi.
OFAC accused the firms of providing financial support to ISIS or acting on behalf of designated ISIS financiers.
According to OFAC, Boukich and Bitcoin Xchange facilitated money transfers for ISIS-linked individuals in several countries.
The agency said the network handled transactions involving individuals in the United States, South Africa, Norway, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
OFAC also alleged that Spider began as a hawala business in Syria. It said the company helped move funds from territories formerly controlled by ISIS to other locations.
Hawala is an informal money transfer system that operates outside traditional banking channels.
The sanctions block all property and interests owned by the designated individuals and companies within U.S. jurisdiction.
The measures also prohibit U.S. citizens and businesses from conducting transactions with the sanctioned parties unless OFAC grants authorisation.
The Treasury Department warned that foreign banks, businesses, and individuals could face sanctions if they knowingly support or facilitate significant transactions involving the designated entities.
The latest action highlights growing international concern over terrorism financing in Nigeria and the wider region.
Nigerian authorities have identified illicit funding as a major driver of terrorist activities. Security agencies have arrested several BDC operators and financial intermediaries during investigations into terror financing.
During former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, authorities arrested 96 suspects and 424 associates over alleged terrorism financing activities. Investigators also linked more than 100 companies and 33 BDC firms to terrorism-financing probes.
The U.S. sanctions place fresh attention on the financial networks that authorities believe sustain terrorist groups operating across West Africa.
