Turkey revokes licence of Iran's Bank Mellat as US sanctions intensify

What Happened

Turkey’s Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency revoked the operating licence of Iran’s Bank Mellat’s main Istanbul branch on 19 September 2026, after 44 years of operation. The agency cited a provision allowing withdrawal of a licence if continued operations pose a risk to depositors’ rights or the stability of the financial system, and did not directly link the move to US sanctions, according to Al Jazeera. Bank Mellat remains on the US Treasury’s sanctions list; Washington designated the bank in 2018, accusing it of providing financial support to Mehr Eqtesad Bank, which the US links to Iran’s Basij.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The revocation removes a long-standing Iranian financial conduit in Turkey just as Washington intensifies sanctions pressure on Tehran. Although Turkey’s regulator did not explicitly cite US sanctions, the timing and the bank’s 2018 US designation signal that Ankara is de-risking its financial system from Iranian entities, potentially narrowing Iran’s access to international banking and signalling Turkish alignment with the US maximum-pressure architecture.

Watch For

Watch for statements from Iran’s Foreign Ministry or Central Bank and any Iranian diplomatic or retaliatory responses. Monitor whether Turkey’s Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency moves against other Iranian-linked financial entities and whether the US Treasury issues additional designations or enforcement actions related to Bank Mellat, Mehr Eqtesad Bank, or the Basij.