BESSENT IN BEAST MODE: Economic Fury Tightens Stranglehold on Iranian Dark Fleet. “The designation of Nobitex adds further layers of complication to Iranian government financial transactions, following the designation of the Hossein Shamkhani trading network on April 15, and the Babak Zanjani business empire on January 30. All three entities, run with huge profits by families all closely connected with leading religious figures in the Iranian political elite, made heavy use of apparently legitimate front companies operating in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. But now that the UAE is abandoning transactionalism and regards Iran as an enemy, the previously relaxed approach of the Emirati authorities toward such activities has been replaced by a determination to tighten controls — as well as to avoid a return to the Financial Action Task Force’s Gray List. The message was made very clear in a video conference on June 3 covering money laundering, convened by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, a call that rounded up almost the entire Emirati leadership and business elite.”