Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 15
By Farhad Daneshvar – Trend:
Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) has denied reports on the closure of bank accounts of Iranian traders there.
Replying to Trend’s query on media reports suggesting that the ABC has blocked the bank accounts of several Iranian traders, the bank said it has not got any official notice regarding the issue.
Over the past week, a number of media outlets published reports that Iranian traders were facing en masse account closures in China as part of new restrictions imposed by the US on the Islamic Republic.
In the meantime, Iranian public broadcaster conducted interviews with several Iranian citizens in China who claimed their accounts with three lenders, namely Agricultural Bank of China, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and China Merchants Bank, have been closed.
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the China Merchants Bank weren’t immediately available for comments.
In late July, the US Treasury introduced sanctions on several Iranian firms for their alleged involvement in the development of a ballistic missile program after Tehran launched a rocket capable of putting a satellite into orbit.