US Treasury adds Russia's VTB to Iran sanctions list

September 15, 2026 at 05:27 AM1 min

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The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control added Russia's second-largest bank VTB to its Iran-related sanctions list on Monday, September 14. The Treasury said VTB facilitated sanctions evasion by opening offices in Iran, dealing with sanctioned Iranian banks, and moving billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets.

Key Facts

OFAC added VTB, Russia's second-largest bank by assets, to its Iran-related sanctions list on September 14.
The Treasury said VTB opened offices in Iran, dealt with sanctioned Iranian banks, and moved billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets.
VTB has been under U.S. sectoral sanctions since July 2014 over the annexation of Crimea.
Washington imposed blocking sanctions on VTB in February 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Sanctions Designation

The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control added VTB to its Iran-related sanctions list on September 14. The Treasury said VTB opened representative offices in Iran and conducted transactions with sanctioned Iranian banks. VTB also participated in moving billions of dollars of frozen Iranian assets, according to the Treasury. The bank created a settlement system in national currencies through correspondent accounts in Iranian rials and Russian rubles to increase bilateral trade.

Prior U.S. Sanctions

VTB has been under U.S. sectoral sanctions since July 2014 over the annexation of Crimea. In February 2022, after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Washington imposed blocking sanctions on the bank.