OFAC screening for cross-chain developers

Cross-chain flows multiply sanctions exposure, so screen at every bridge, every hop, and on every chain your users touch.

TL;DR

TL;DR: Each chain and bridge hop is a new transaction surface, so add a screening check at every point where a wallet or counterparty enters the flow.

Why every hop matters

A single user action in a cross-chain app can touch several networks and contracts. If you screen only on the source chain, a blocked wallet can still receive value on the destination chain. OFAC's SDN List includes crypto wallets, and the 50 Percent Rule means entities 50 percent or more owned by a blocked person are also blocked.

What to screen

Screen wallet addresses, not just names. A screening API that tracks OFAC-listed crypto wallets and SDN names across multiple jurisdictions gives you one consistent decision at every hop. SanctionsAI covers 947 OFAC-listed wallets and 19,218 SDN names, synced hourly.

Practical approach

Put the check inside your bridge and router logic so it runs automatically. One HTTP call under 100 ms keeps cross-chain latency low. The result is simple: clean means allow, flagged means block. Integrations like Base/USDC and MCP make this reachable from the tooling you already use.