OFAC List-Based Sanctions

Sanctions that target specific named people and entities, chiefly the SDN List, rather than an entire country or region.

TL;DR

TL;DR: List-based sanctions block specific individuals and organizations by name, with the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (the SDN List) as the central source. Screening means checking each counterparty against that list before transacting.

How list-based sanctions work

Unlike comprehensive country programs, list-based sanctions name particular people, entities, and assets. The SDN List, maintained by OFAC, is the primary list, and it also carries designations such as those for terrorism and cyber activity. The 50 Percent Rule extends a designation to entities that are 50 percent or more owned by a blocked person, so screening must look beyond exact name matches to ownership links.

Why it matters for agent payments

A screening API checks a counterparty against the SDN List before the agent pays, and returns clean for ALLOW or flagged for BLOCK. With 19,218 SDN names plus 947 OFAC-listed crypto wallets in the live data set, the check must run against current list entries, refreshed hourly, because new names and wallets are added over time.

What screening must catch

• Exact SDN name matches
• Listed crypto wallet addresses
• Entities 50 percent or more owned by a blocked person

Why lists are the screening backbone

List-based programs are the backbone of screening because they give a concrete, machine-readable target: a name or an address to match against. That is what makes an automated check possible, and why the SDN List and the listed crypto wallets are the primary data a screening API consumes. Comprehensive programs still need name checks, but the list is where most counterparty risk is caught first.