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The Central Bank of the UAE announced the restrictions against the local branches of Iran’s largest state-owned lender on September 23, 2026, according to a Reuters report published that day. The move prohibits transactions linking the UAE operations to Iran and comes as the regulator cited failures to meet local compliance standards. Bank Melli Iran has maintained a longstanding presence in the Emirates despite multiple rounds of international sanctions on Tehran.
US Treasury Department actions provided the immediate context for the UAE decision, a department press release from August 28, 2026, stated. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Reza Mohammad Taeedi, the general manager of the bank’s Dubai branch, under a counterterrorism executive order for acting on behalf of the institution. The department described Bank Melli as having facilitated billions of dollars in transactions tied to sanctioned Iranian entities including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Treasury estimates placed the value of potentially sanction-evading flows processed by related UAE branches at $1.8 billion between January 2024 and June 2026, the August 28 press release detailed. This volume involved more than 100 companies suspected of forming part of Iranian shadow banking networks. The UAE central bank subsequently initiated a special and urgent examination of the Bank Melli branches under its supervision.
Bank Melli Iran operates seven branches across six emirates in addition to a pay office in Dubai, according to data compiled by financial services platform Klip.ae. These locations hold licenses issued by the Central Bank of the UAE, some of which date to 1969. The new prohibition sharply curtails the branches’ ability to support cross-border payments while leaving their local UAE customer services subject to further review.
Bilateral trade between the UAE and Iran totalled roughly $28 billion in 2024, with the Emirates serving as Iran’s largest source of imports that year, a New York Times analysis found. Such economic ties have offered Iran a vital channel for goods and finance amid years of isolation. The central bank’s action reflects heightened scrutiny of these links following the US Treasury’s renewed push under its Operation Economic Outcast initiative.
UAE authorities have repeatedly stated that licensed banks must avoid exposing the domestic financial system to reputational or compliance risks, a position reiterated in responses to the August Treasury announcements. The latest measures against Bank Melli align with parallel reviews of other institutions flagged in US designations. No immediate response from Bank Melli Iran was available in the reports detailing the prohibition.
