OFAC screening for programmatic payments
Programmatic payments need API-driven screening, where the screening call is just another step in the automated payment pipeline.
TL;DR
TL;DR: Programmatic, API-driven payments need API-driven OFAC screening. The screening call is just another step in your payment pipeline, made before the transfer is broadcast.
Why automation changes the control
Programmatic payments run without a human in the loop, so a manual list check is not an option. Each payment still needs a counterparty decision before funds move, or the pipeline will send money to a designated address automatically. OFAC strict liability means intent is not required, and penalties start at over $350,000 per violation, so the screening step must be as automated as the payment itself.
Where the screening call fits
Insert a screening call after the recipient address is resolved and before the transfer is signed or broadcast. sanctionsai.dev checks the wallet against 947 OFAC-listed crypto wallets and 19,218 SDN names in one HTTP call under 100 ms, returning clean (ALLOW) or flagged (BLOCK). On ALLOW the pipeline proceeds; on BLOCK it stops and logs the decision, following the SCREEN, SCORE, STOP, STAMP pattern.
Design points for the pipeline
- Make the screening call synchronous so no payment skips it.
- Fail closed: an error should block the payment, not allow it.
- Log every decision so each automated payment is auditable.
If the payment is automated, the compliance gate must be automated too.
The same principle applies to scheduled and batched payments: every item in the batch needs its own clean result before release.