The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") continues to highlight its coordination with other U.S. agencies and other international partners in its efforts to crack down on malign activities worldwide. On May 7th, OFAC designated a Russian leader of the Russia-based LockBit Group, for assisting in the development and distribution of LockBit ransomware. In doing so, OFAC made clear that the designation was the result of coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United Kingdom's National Crime Agency, the Australian Federal Police, and other international partners.
These cross-agency and cross-jurisdictional sanctions efforts are becoming more common and are a sign of the increasing role sanctions are playing in U.S. foreign policy and national security goals. This designation, in particular, also demonstrates OFAC's commitment to “disrupting and degrading” the ransomware ecosystem.