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The US Treasury Department will cut off the United Arab Emirates branches of Banque Misr, Egypt’s second-largest bank, from the American financial system as part of a campaign to isolate Iran economically.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the decision, warning that Tehran’s allies “cannot continue to enjoy access to the US dollar and the global financial system.”
The regulatory action follows a month-long public comment period before officially blocking the UAE branches from interacting with US financial institutions.
The move reinforces Washington’s broader “economic asphyxiation” strategy against Iran, launched six months after US-Israel strikes in February triggered a regional military stalemate and an Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Bessent declared an “economic D-Day” against Tehran and confirmed that President Donald Trump is directly urging world leaders to cut all diplomatic and financial ties with the Iranian regime.
Bessent plans to press G20 finance ministers to join the pressure campaign during upcoming meetings in Asheville, North Carolina.
Despite targeting Banque Misr, the Trump administration faces significant hurdles in confronting larger Iranian trade partners like China, which buys the vast majority of Iran’s oil exports.
Aggressive sanctions against Chinese entities risk disrupting the global economy and destabilising US-China relations ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s planned visit to Washington in September.
Alongside the action against Banque Misr, the Treasury Department sanctioned the manager of Bank Melli’s Dubai branch and blacklisted a Hong Kong front company for laundering money on behalf of a sanctioned Iranian exchange house.
