US Treasury targets Egyptian bank's UAE branches over Iran dealings
The Treasury Department said Banque Misr's UAE branches had processed over $1 billion for Iranian shadow banking networks.
WASHINGTON — Days after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent threatened to further isolate Iran from the global economy, the Trump administration took aim at an Egyptian bank doing business with the Islamic Republic.
The Treasury Department said in a news release that between January 2024 and June 2026, the United Arab Emirates-based branches of Banque Misr, Egypt's second-largest bank, processed roughly $1.8 billion for more than 100 companies that are potentially part of Iranian shadow banking networks. The department proposed a rule on Friday to revoke Banque Misr UAE's correspondent banking access to US financial institutions.
“Treasury promised to sever every economic lifeline Tehran has left and finally end the threat of the Iranian regime,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an X post.
“We also warned that Iran’s enablers cannot continue to enjoy access to the U.S. dollar and the global financial system. Banque Misr UAE decided to find out the hard way,” Bessent said.
