WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Treasury Department rolled out a rapid series of actions last week spanning war-fueled sanctions, a political warning to states over tax conformity, a new pressure campaign on Venezuela’s oil-linked shipping network, and a sweeping federal assessment of financial stability risks ranging from cyber threats to artificial intelligence.
On Tuesday, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned four individuals and four entities tied to what Treasury described as a Colombian-led network that recruits former Colombian military personnel to fight for Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group Washington blames for atrocities in a civil war Treasury called the world’s worst ongoing humanitarian crisis.
Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley said Treasury was targeting a network that recruits fighters for the RSF, which he said has shown it is willing to target civilians, including infants and young children.
Treasury said the RSF and allied militias have repeatedly targeted civilians since the conflict began in April 2023, including systematic killings of men and boys, deliberate assaults on women and girls through rape and other sexual violence, and obstruction of humanitarian aid. Treasury said the RSF, supported by Colombian fighters, captured El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, on October 26, 2025, after an 18-month siege, and then carried out mass killings, ethnically targeted torture, and sexual violence. Treasury noted the State Department determined on January 7, 2025, that members of the RSF committed genocide.
Treasury identified a central recruiter as Alvaro Andres Quijano Becerra, a dual Colombian-Italian national and retired Colombian military officer based in the United Arab Emirates, and said he played a key role in recruiting and deploying former Colombian military personnel to Sudan. Treasury also described Colombia-based International Services Agency, known as A4SI, as the main recruiting node, citing campaigns to fill roles including drone operators, snipers, and translators. Treasury said Quijano’s wife, Claudia Viviana Oliveros Forero, owned and managed A4SI, and that Panama-based Global Staffing S.A., now Talent Bridge, S.A., was used to sign contracts and receive funds on A4SI’s behalf. Treasury said a Bogota-based employment agency, Maine Global Corp S.A.S., managed and disbursed funds, including payroll processing and currency conversion, and tied its management to Mateo Andres Duque Botero and Monica Muñoz Ucros, also linked to Comercializadora San Bendito.
Treasury said Quijano and A4SI were designated under Executive Order 14098, which targets those destabilizing Sudan and undermining a democratic transition, and described additional designations under the same authority for Oliveros, Global Staffing, Maine Global Corp, Duque, Muñoz, and San Bendito based on their alleged roles supporting the network.
The sanctions block property and interests in property of designated persons in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons, Treasury said, and generally prohibit transactions involving blocked persons absent authorization. Treasury warned that sanctions violations can lead to civil or criminal penalties, and said entities owned 50 percent or more by blocked persons are also blocked.
A day later, on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent issued a statement criticizing what he called the ongoing refusal by several Democrat-led states to conform to key provisions of a July 4 bill signed by President Donald Trump that Treasury said delivered major tax relief. Bessent cited provisions including “No Tax on Tips,” “No Tax on Overtime,” and a new tax deduction for seniors who depend on Social Security, and accused Colorado, New York, Illinois, and the District of Columbia of blocking residents from receiving the benefits at the state level. Bessent called on the states to conform and said Treasury stood ready to work with states committed to implementing the benefits.
On Thursday, Treasury escalated pressure on Venezuela, with OFAC sanctioning three nephews of Venezuelan first lady Cilia Flores, a Maduro-affiliated businessman, and six shipping companies operating in Venezuela’s oil sector, while identifying six vessels linked to what Treasury described as deceptive and unsafe shipping practices that provide financial resources to President Nicolas Maduro’s “illegitimate regime.”
Bessent said Nicolas Maduro and his associates were flooding the United States with drugs and said the sanctions reversed what he called a failed Biden-era attempt to make a deal with Maduro. Treasury said two of the newly designated nephews, Efrain Antonio Campo Flores and Franqui Francisco Flores de Freitas — known as the “narco-nephews” — were arrested in Haiti in November 2015 while finalizing a deal to transport hundreds of kilograms of cocaine to the United States, convicted in November 2016, and granted clemency in October 2022, before returning to Venezuela and continuing drug trafficking activities as of 2025. Treasury said it designated them under Executive Order 14059, which targets those contributing to the international proliferation of illicit drugs.
Treasury said it also redesignated Carlos Erik Malpica Flores — a third nephew and former purported Venezuelan national treasurer and purported vice president at the state oil company PDVSA — under Executive Order 13692 as a current or former official of the Venezuelan government. Treasury said Malpica had been designated in July 2017 and removed from the sanctions list in 2022 to promote negotiations that ultimately failed.
Treasury also designated Panamanian businessman Ramon Carretero Napolitano under Executive Order 13850, saying he operated in the Venezuelan oil sector and facilitated shipments of petroleum products on behalf of the Venezuelan government.
Treasury said the action targeted six shipping companies connected to Venezuelan oil shipments and identified associated vessels as blocked property, including WHITE CRANE, KIARA M, H. CONSTANCE, LATTAFA, TAMIA, and MONIQUE. Treasury said several vessels manipulated or failed to transmit location data to obscure activity involving Venezuelan oil, and said the companies were designated under Executive Order 13850 for operating in Venezuela’s oil sector.
Also on Thursday, Treasury said the Financial Stability Oversight Council unanimously approved its 2025 annual report, concluding that U.S. financial markets and institutions functioned effectively in 2025 while identifying priority risks and issuing policy recommendations.
Bessent said the administration was pursuing “Parallel Prosperity,” describing an approach aimed at economic expansion where Wall Street and Main Street grow together, and emphasized FSOC’s role in ensuring the financial system supports that vision.
Treasury said the report was restructured around priority areas with actionable recommendations, including bolstering Treasury market resilience through continued work by the Inter-Agency Working Group on Treasury Market Surveillance and a new Market Resilience Working Group, supporting the Securities and Exchange Commission’s central clearing mandate for Treasuries, and endorsing banking agencies’ final rule amending the enhanced supplementary leverage ratio to improve Treasury market intermediation capacity. Treasury said the council also urged monitoring developments such as new Treasury central counterparties and implementation of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act to better understand impacts on Treasury market structure, functioning, and demand.
On cyber risk, Treasury said FSOC highlighted an evolving threat landscape featuring nation-state actors and sophisticated criminal groups targeting financial institutions and critical infrastructure. Treasury said FSOC recommended expanded joint monitoring and information-sharing among regulators and industry, increased use of scenario-driven tabletop exercises, broader deployment of artificial intelligence in cyber defense, better coordination of third-party service provider examinations, and legislation to ensure the Federal Housing Finance Agency has adequate examination and enforcement powers related to third-party service providers. Treasury said FSOC also urged consideration of cryptographic risks posed by quantum computing and steps to migrate toward quantum-resistant encryption.
Treasury said FSOC endorsed efforts in 2025 to enhance supervision and regulation of banks and credit unions, encouraged additional modernization steps to improve transparency and reduce unnecessary regulatory burden, and supported efforts to clarify what constitutes an “unsafe or unsound practice” while reducing compliance costs for community banks.
On artificial intelligence, Treasury said FSOC noted a sharp increase in adoption by financial institutions and exploration by regulators, and recommended using the council’s Artificial Intelligence Working Group to identify opportunities for AI to strengthen resilience while monitoring for risks to financial stability.
Treasury also said Bessent convened FSOC in executive and open sessions on Thursday, where members received updates on priority workstreams — including AI, household resilience, market resilience, and crisis preparedness — and discussed potential revisions to interpretive guidance for nonbank financial company determinations and the council’s analytic framework for risk identification, assessment, and response. Treasury said the council heard a presentation on the annual report during the open session and voted unanimously to approve it.
Treasury listed attendees as including Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould, acting CFPB representation by Deputy Director Geoffrey Gradler, SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins, acting FDIC Chairman Travis Hill, acting CFTC Chair Caroline D. Pham, FHFA Director William J. Pulte, NCUA Chairman Kyle S. Hauptman, and other federal and state officials serving as non-voting members.
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