April 23, 2026
Two Weeks Into the Ceasefire: A Maritime Intelligence Breakdown
Know Your Vessel – Case studies in steering clear of sanctions evasion
What’s inside?
Global trade financing is an increasingly complex task for financial institutions, especially when vessels are involved. Many authorities now expect financial institutions to implement sophisticated controls when it comes to shipping. These include screening and monitoring for potential sanctions violations, trade-based money laundering, and other high-risk transactions.
Recently, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) put out a new advisory describing common deceptive shipping practices. It also recommends a list of due diligence procedures for organizations across the maritime ecosystem to implement.
Given the large volume of transactions and the need for timely processing of transactions, it is not feasible to complete Enhanced Due Diligence (EDD) on every transaction. Financial institutions must rely on a risk-based approach to protect themselves and keep their business on track.
Know Your Vessel: Case Studies in Steering Clear of Sanctions Evasion examines two public examples where standard screening tools failed to identify red flags associated with a vessel involved in a transaction and reviews the resulting risks to the transaction parties.
It goes on to explain how a Know Your Vessel (KYV) process such as considering the vessels’ prior behavior would have flagged the transaction. It ends by describing how KYV can be incorporated into the transaction screening process.
Â
Featured posts
Two Weeks Into the Ceasefire: A Maritime Intelligence Breakdown
At a Glance The Second Week of the Ceasefire at Sea Two weeks after the ceasefire announcement, the maritime system has moved further away from normalization. The first week of the ceasefire established that Hormuz had not reopened to normal commercial traffic. Movement continued, but under overlapping Iranian control and U.S. enforcement. During the second…
Read more
April 23, 2026: Iran War Maritime Intelligence Daily
At a Glance Operational Overview Maritime dynamics across the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding corridors continue to shift from constrained activity toward selective escalation, with enforcement, evasion, and direct engagement shaping vessel behavior. Iranian crude exports from Kharg Island declined sharply during the week of April 13–19, with total volumes estimated at approximately 3 million…
Read more
Iran War Exposes AIS Gaps and the Need for Multi-Source Intelligence
At a Glance The Iran War Exposed a Visibility Gap Operation Epic Fury did not stop maritime activity. It changed how that activity is conducted and how visible it is. From the outset, the electronic environment degraded at scale. More than 1,100 vessels were affected by GPS and AIS interference within the first 24 hours,…
Read more
Iran War and the Future of Chokepoint ControlÂ
At a Glance From Open Sea to Controlled Passage For decades, global shipping has operated on a foundational assumption: freedom of navigation. The Iran war is challenging that assumption in real time. The Strait of Hormuz is no longer just congested or high-risk. It is controlled. Transit is selective, access is conditional, and movement depends…
Read more
Iran War Confirmed Vessel Attacks and Maritime Infrastructure Strikes
Number of confirmed incidents: 71 (34 vessels and 37 oil, gas, and port facilities). At a Glance Attack Patterns Across Commercial Shipping Since the start of the Iran war, maritime security incidents have expanded across the commercial operating environment, affecting vessels at anchor, in transit, in drydock, and during ship-to-ship operations. The pattern is no…
Read more
April 20, 2026: Iran War Maritime Intelligence Daily
At a Glance Operational Overview Maritime dynamics around the Strait of Hormuz continue to escalate, with enforcement, evasion, and geographic expansion reshaping the operational picture. Following the sharp deterioration on April 18, the Strait remains highly unstable. Vessel behavior continues to reflect elevated risk, with reversals, rerouting, and cautious staging dominating traffic patterns. At the…
Read more