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After Iran Deal, a Flood of Questions for Treasury Department: Former Official
printThe nuclear accord reached last year between five Western nations and Iran has done more than stir hopes and fears about the Islamic republic's return to global markets. For U.S. sanctions experts, the deal has also created a mountain of work, according to former Treasury Department official Elizabeth Rosenberg. From a supervisory perspective, "we are in new territory," according to Rosenberg, who served as a senior advisor in the department for both the assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crimes and to the undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. Rosenberg, who now directs the Energy, Economics and Security Program...
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Financial institutions in Iran have recently sought guidance from anti-money laundering consultants and attorneys in the United States amid a broader push by the Islamic Republic to reengage with the global banking system.
Several financial institutions in the European Union and Asia are "ring-fencing" their American employees and taking other preliminary steps to reengage with Iran months after economic sanctions were eased under a global nuclear accord.
Several U.S. banks are rejecting or blocking transactions involving dozens of entities removed from Western blacklists in January over concerns that the parties may have ties to the Iranian government.
Iran's recent steps to bolster its controls against money laundering and terrorist financing have resulted in few returns from wary global financial institutions, the country's top banking regulator said Friday.
U.K. banks are engaging in discussions with institutions in Iran in conjunction with the British government's efforts to renew trade with the country, according to a government official.
Iran's historic reentry into global markets Saturday came with expected fanfare and protest, and few surprises. Least surprising of all, the implementation of the sanctions accord means that the toughest work for banks could lie ahead.
The expected reemergence of Iran on global markets will likely pose the toughest challenge for sanctions compliance officers in the coming year, according to Alexandre Lamy, an attorney with Baker & McKenzie's International Trade Practice Group.
U.S. officials should blacklist an elite Iranian military branch and its foreign proxies for their suspected financial support of terrorism, analysts and lawmakers said Thursday.
An accord between Iran and six nations expected to result in the broad suspension of sanctions against the Islamic republic will likely bring questions along with opportunities for banks.