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Türkiye’s Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BRSA) has revoked the operating license of Iran-based Bank Mellat’s Istanbul branch, ending its lending activities in the country after more than four decades, as U.S. sanctions targeting Tehran’s financial networks intensify.
The regulator cited concerns that the bank’s continued operations could pose risks to depositors and financial stability, triggering action under the relevant provision of Türkiye’s Banking Law.
Bank Mellat is one of Iran’s major financial institutions, with about 47.9 quadrillion Iranian rials ($34.8 billion) in total assets as of March 2026, according to Iranian financial-data provider Shakhesban.
Bank Mellat has faced sanctions and financial restrictions from the U.S., European Union, and U.K. over its alleged links to Iran’s nuclear and missile programs. The U.S. Treasury first designated the bank in October 2007, accusing it of providing financial services to Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization.
The bank has maintained a presence in Türkiye since the early 1980s, starting with Istanbul and later expanding to Izmir and Ankara. It describes its Türkiye operation as one of its prominent overseas branches, supporting economic activity in Türkiye and contributing to joint projects and trade between Türkiye and Iran.
At the end of 2025, the Türkiye operation had €41 million ($42.1 million) in total assets and employed 39 people, according to data from the Banks Association of Türkiye.
The development adds to Türkiye’s recent steps following tightened U.S. sanctions targeting Iranian entities under Operation Economic Outcast, which began in late August and aims to cut off Iran’s remaining financial lifelines and disrupt the networks supporting its regime.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned that foreign companies and financial institutions doing business with sanctioned Iranian entities or supporting their sanctions-evasion networks could also face secondary sanctions.
On Wednesday, the BRSA gave Türkiye’s Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) control of stakes held by Golden Global Investment Bank’s three main shareholders, covering nearly all of the lender, less than two weeks after the bank and two subsidiaries were sanctioned by the U.S. over alleged Iran ties.
Washington also expanded sanctions against Iran’s aviation sector on Sept. 8, targeting 36 entities, including 27 Iranian airlines and several companies in Türkiye accused of supporting Mahan Air and other Iranian carriers. Mahan Air subsequently suspended flights to Istanbul and Ankara from Sept. 21.
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