Washington freezes assets, bans transactions as counterterrorism net tightens across West Africa

The United States has blacklisted a Nigerian national and three local businesses over accusations that they operated a covert financial network funneling money to the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group, marking the latest salvo in Washington's widening war on global terrorism financing.

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), acting jointly with the State Department, designated Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad — also known as Mukhtar Adamu — as a key financial facilitator for ISIS-West Africa (ISWAP). Authorities allege Muhammad orchestrated money transfers on behalf of the militant faction, which has waged a deadly insurgency across Nigeria's North-East and the wider Lake Chad basin for nearly a decade.

Three Nigeria-based Bureau de Change operators were also sanctioned: Generation Currency Bureau De Change Limited in Lagos, Nine to Nine Exchange Bureau De Change Limited in Ikeja, and Manhattan Bureau De Change Limited in Kano. U.S. officials say the firms were owned, controlled, or directed by Muhammad and used to move or conceal funds linked to terrorist activities.

The designations were part of a broader operation targeting nine individuals and entities across four countries — Nigeria, France, Syria, and Türkiye — that U.S. authorities say form a transnational support network for ISIS.

"Today's designations target three individuals and six entities operating across Europe, the Middle East, and West Africa who have enabled ISIS to move money across borders," said State Department spokesperson Thomas Pigott.

Among those sanctioned abroad were a France-based facilitator accused of supplying bomb-making instructions to ISIS sympathisers, and a Syria-based operator alleged to have used cryptocurrency to transfer funds on behalf of ISIS associates in multiple countries, including the United States.

Two Turkish-registered companies — Alkaram Danismanlik Gayrimenkul Ic ve Dis Genel Ticaret Limited Sirketi and Spider Gayrimenkul ve Genel Ticaret Limited Sirketi — were also blacklisted, alongside Bitcoin Exchange Agent Idlib's No.1 Coin Exchange in Syria.

Assets Frozen, Transactions Prohibited

Under the sanctions, any assets or property interests belonging to the designated individuals and entities within U.S. jurisdiction are immediately frozen. American citizens, companies, and financial institutions are prohibited from conducting any transactions with them, with violators facing severe penalties.

The action was authorised under Executive Order 13224, as amended, which empowers the U.S. government to designate and dismantle organisations and individuals involved in terrorism-related activities.

The sanctions come amid intensifying security cooperation between Abuja and Washington. In a joint operation on May 16, 2026, U.S. and Nigerian forces killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described by American authorities as the second-highest-ranking ISIS leader. Washington has hailed Nigeria as a critical partner in the fight against extremism in West Africa.

"We will continue to use every diplomatic and legal tool available to hold ISIS and its supporters accountable — wherever they operate and however they move money," Pigott said.

ISIS-West Africa emerged in 2016 after splitting from Boko Haram and has since become one of the continent's most lethal militant groups, responsible for thousands of deaths and widespread displacement across Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon.

The U.S. reaffirmed its "strong partnership with Nigeria" in the ongoing campaign against terrorism, vowing to sustain pressure on financing networks that sustain extremist operations in the region.