US Treasury Sanctions Three Turkish Firms Linked to Iran

The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday imposed sanctions on three interconnected Turkish financial entities, alleging their involvement in Iran's financial sector and efforts to circumvent international pressure. The targeted firms, all based in Istanbul, are Golden Global Yatirim Bankasi Anonim Sirketi, an investment bank; Golden Global Portfoy Yonetimi Anonim Sirketi, an asset manager; and Golden Global Varlik Kiralama Anonim Sirketi, an asset leasing company. The sanctions, issued by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), place the entities on the Specially Designated Nationals list, effectively cutting them off from the U.S. dollar-based financial system. The Treasury stated that the Golden Global network was established to facilitate Iran's shadow banking operations, enabling the transfer of oil revenues from China to Turkey, where they could be converted to cash and gold. Officials also claim the bank knowingly offered correspondent banking services to Iranian financial institutions, facilitating transactions for entities linked to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Qods Force and its proxies.