Trump flags claims US bank helped skirt Iran sanctions
US president Donald Trump has spotlighted whistleblower allegations that Standard Chartered Bank’s New York branch moved billions of dollars to entities linked to Iran and Hezbollah.
US president Donald Trump has spotlighted whistleblower allegations that Standard Chartered Bank’s New York branch moved billions of dollars to entities linked to Iran and Hezbollah.
Sharing a report from The Gateway Pundit on Truth Social Wednesday, the president cited claims that at least $9.6 billion in illicit payments were cleared through the branch to names on the US Treasury’s sanctions list, including designated terrorist organizations.
The allegations, first published on July 22 and updated with new material from bank insiders, center on transactions said to involve Euro African Group Ltd—controlled by Hezbollah financier Mohammad Bazzi—alongside Koussani Steel, Kuwait Automotive Group, Bank of Algeria, Iranian oil trading intermediaries, and other sanctioned entities.
“With all oil trade required to be in US dollar currency, China is using SCB and its NYC branch to buy Iranian oil in US dollars,” the story reads.
The Trump administration has imposed a sweeping sanctions campaign on Iran aimed at curbing its oil sales network, while tightening enforcement measures to cut off Tehran’s access to the US financial system and global banking channels.
In June, however, Trump announced on social media that China could now buy Iranian oil — a shift from his previous hardline stance.
China remains the only major buyer of Iranian crude, taking in the vast majority of Tehran’s exports. Despite years of sanctions and stepped-up enforcement, the flow of oil to Chinese refiners has not been halted, with shipments often routed through intermediaries or mislabeled to disguise their origin.
According to The Gateway Pundit, the case is supported by 40,000 internal emails containing foreign exchange trade records.
The report alleges that senior officials, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, were briefed on the matter in early 2024 but took no action.
Trump, in his post, called James “a disgrace” but offered no further details on what action he believed should follow.
