Iraq revokes Iran’s Bank Melli operating license

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The largest bank in Iran, Bank Melli Iran, has had its operating license withdrawn by the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), noting the bank’s restricted activities in Iraq, according to a CBI document that was confirmed by two officials.

The document that was issued last week mentioned that the CBI decided to revoke the Iranian bank’s license due to the losses it suffered in Iraq, its restricted operations, its incapacity to initiate or broaden banking operations, and its inclusion in international sanctions, Reuters reported.

In 2018, the US Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on Bank Melli Iran, claiming that the bank’s operations in Iraq were part of a plot by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to transfer money to militias in Iraq.

Days following a visit by a senior US Treasury official, Iraq barred eight local commercial banks from carrying out transactions in US dollars, reducing fraud, money laundering, and other illicit uses of US cash.

The banks are prohibited from participating in the daily US dollar auction held by the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI), which is the primary source of hard currency for Iraq and the focus of an American campaign against the smuggling of money into Iran, according to Reuters.

Iraq trusts that Washington will continue to provide access to oil earnings and finances, given that Iraq has reserves worth over $100 billion in the United States.

Last July, the United States barred 14 Iraqi banks from conducting US dollar transactions as part of a crackdown on transferring US currency to Iran and other sanctioned countries.

The step highlights the ongoing efforts to lessen Iran’s access to international financial networks.