US Sanctions One of Russia’s Largest Banks for Supporting Iran
The US Treasury accuses Russia’s VTB Bank of being involved in establishing relationships through the banking messaging system with sanctioned Iranian banks.
The US Department of the Treasury has placed VTB Bank, one of Russia’s largest financial institutions, on its sanctions list as part of economic “isolation” operations targeting Iran, accusing the bank of helping Tehran evade international sanctions, while Russia’s banking system is itself facing numerous difficulties as a result of sanctions related to the war in Ukraine.
In a statement issued Monday, the US Treasury said that VTB Bank had engaged in activities aimed at facilitating Iran’s evasion of sanctions, including establishing relationships through the banking messaging system with Iranian banks subject to sanctions.
The statement noted that the Russian bank is now classified among the financial institutions most exposed to sanctions worldwide.
It also warned foreign financial institutions that continue to conduct transactions with the Russian bank that they face a high risk of secondary sanctions, urging them to terminate such relationships immediately.
The statement said that the Russian bank had opened offices in Iran in recent years with the aim of formalizing close banking coordination with Tehran and expanding trade between the two countries.
It added that the bank had established correspondent banking relationships with sanctioned Iranian institutions over the past three years and had taken steps to expand its presence in Tehran since January 2025.
The US Treasury emphasized that the bank had taken steps to transfer billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets and had established a payment system allowing transactions to be conducted in national currencies — the Iranian rial and Russian ruble — through correspondent accounts in order to strengthen bilateral trade.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, for his part, said in a statement included in the Treasury’s announcement that the department would continue to target and disrupt any financial, technological, or material support enabling Iran to continue activities that Washington classifies as “terrorist.”
Bessent stressed that the US Treasury would not tolerate any form of support provided to Tehran and would continue to identify, expose, and isolate those providing such support.
The addition of the Russian bank to the sanctions list comes as Washington tightens its pressure on the Iranian economy through a broad financial blockade. The measures target not only Iranian institutions but also banks and institutions in countries allied with Tehran. The administration of President Donald Trump describes this policy as an “economic D-Day,” referring to the escalation of pressure.
Through this strategy, Washington seeks to shut down the financing channels Tehran relies on to circumvent sanctions by threatening foreign institutions with secondary sanctions if they continue doing business with Iran. This means expanding the scope of the economic blockade to banking and commercial networks outside Iran, thereby increasing the cost for Tehran of accessing funds and international markets.
