UAE bars Bank Melli branches from Iran transactions

The United Arab Emirates’ central bank said Wednesday that it had sanctioned the UAE branches of Iran’s Bank Melli and barred them from financial transactions to and from Iran.

The central bank said all Bank Melli Iran branches operating in the UAE are prohibited from conducting transactions to and from Iran, including trade finance and fund transfers.

It said the measure followed “non-compliance” with UAE regulations, laws and supervisory decisions, including requirements linked to combating money laundering, terrorism financing and proliferation financing.

The announcement came against the backdrop of the Middle East war, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, and Washington’s more recent economic pressure campaign against Tehran.

As part of that campaign, the United States announced new measures at the end of August targeting Iran’s trading partners and sanctioned the director of Bank Melli’s Dubai branch.

Last month, the UAE announced the suspension of trade and financial exchanges with Tehran.

Dubai is home to a large Iranian community, estimated in the supplied material at several hundred thousand people, which has contributed to the emirate’s commercial development and has weathered periods of tension with Tehran.