On January 17, 2025, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on the Yemen and Kuwait Bank for Commerce and Investment (YSC) for providing financial support to the Iran-backed Houthis. The sanctions aim to disrupt the Houthis' access to the international financial system and their funding for destabilizing attacks in the region. Bradley Smith, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, emphasized the importance of cutting off these illicit financial channels to prevent further destabilization. The sanctions add to previous measures targeting Houthi-affiliated exchange companies and international financing networks responsible for channeling illicit proceeds from Iranian oil sales to the Houthis. The Houthis rely on a network of exchange offices, banks, and other financial intermediaries to receive funds from Iran and engage in illicit trade, including with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force. Senior Houthi officials, including Hisham Ismail Ali Ahmed Al-Madani, the Houthi-aligned Central Bank governor in Sana'a, have played key roles in transferring funds from the Quds Force to the Houthis.