WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) – The U.S. Treasury Department proposed a rule on Thursday that, if finalized, would sever MBaer Merchant Bank AG’s access to the U.S. financial system on the grounds the Swiss bank had supported illicit actors linked to Iran and Russia.
The Treasury alleged MBaer and its employees had facilitated corruption linked to Venezuelan and Russian money laundering as well as money laundering and terrorist financing on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its Quds Force, which are under sanctions from the U.S.
“MBaer has funneled over a hundred million dollars through the U.S. financial system on behalf of illicit actors tied to Iran and Russia,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. “Banks should be on notice that the U.S. Treasury will aggressively protect the integrity of the U.S. financial system using the full force of our authorities.”
The Treasury said that if finalized, the proposed rule would prohibit covered U.S. financial institutions from opening or maintaining a correspondent account for, or on behalf of, MBaer.
The Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network anti-money laundering bureau published a notice of proposed rulemaking that invites written comments for 30 days on the plan to cut off the small Swiss private bank from the U.S. dollar-based financial system.
FinCEN said in the notice that for years, MBaer “has directly or indirectly facilitated money laundering for or on behalf of illicit actors, including through processing transactions related to Venezuelan corruption and Russian and Iranian illicit activities.”
(Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis and David Lawder;Editing by David Ljunggren, Rod Nickel)
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