U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Vows to ‘Asphyxiate’ Iranian Economy, Targets Offshore Assets

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has signaled a significant escalation in the Trump administration’s pressure campaign against Iran, outlining a strategy of financial “asphyxiation” designed to dismantle the regime’s global economic reach.

Speaking during a fireside chat with FOX Business’ Larry Kudlow at the G20 Finance Ministerial in North Carolina, Bessent warned that the U.S. is prepared to isolate any bank, firm, or entity that continues to facilitate business with the Iranian government. The Treasury Department is specifically targeting the offshore financial infrastructure of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including secret trust accounts and luxury real estate holdings worldwide.

“We are tracking down the IRGC’s assets, and I will say it on worldwide TV, just so you know,” Bessent said. “We know where in the British Virgin Islands your accounts are at these trust companies, we know the $100 million houses you have around the world, and we are going to freeze those.”

An “Economic D-Day” Against Tehran

The Treasury Secretary’s remarks follow President Donald Trump’s promise to launch an “economic D-Day” against the Tehran regime. The administration’s policy aims to mirror the effectiveness of military campaigns by utilizing the full weight of U.S. financial hegemony.

Bessent outlined a clear ultimatum for international actors: entities that ignore U.S. embargoes—or assist in the movement of Iranian funds—risk being severed from the U.S. dollar-based financial system. This would effectively function as a “financial death sentence,” stripping these entities of access to U.S. banking, the Federal Reserve wire, and the SWIFT messaging ledger.

“We are going to our partners, we are going to close all of that down,” Bessent stated. “We are going to go after the regime’s illegitimate assets that they have stolen from the Iranian people, and those can go back to the Iranian people, or they can go to the victims of terror.”

Global Pressure and Diplomatic Strategy

The aggressive posture is intended to address three primary U.S. security concerns: preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, halting the enrichment of uranium, and curbing the regime’s ability to fund and direct proxy networks across the Gulf.

When questioned about the potential for pushback from global powers like China, Bessent suggested that the U.S. finds common ground with Beijing regarding the stability of the Middle East.

“The Chinese agree—Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. The Chinese agree that there should be freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” Bessent said. “We have had private discussions with them in terms of achieving those goals.”

As the administration moves to tighten the noose on the Iranian economy, the focus remains on leveraging the U.S. dollar’s role as the world’s primary reserve currency to force compliance. With the regime’s assets now explicitly in the crosshairs, the administration is making it clear that for those doing business with Tehran, the cost of participation is about to become prohibitively high.

Fox News’ Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report.