What impact will US sanctions against a Turkish bank have? Khashayar Jenidi, BBC journalist in Washington

The US Department of the Treasury announced new sanctions on Friday against an investment bank in Turkey. According to a statement by the US Treasury Department, Golden Global Investment Bank and two companies affiliated with it are accused of facilitating the transfer of proceeds from the sale of Iran’s crude oil to China through a network of exchange bureaus in Turkey. The US Treasury Department also accused the bank of being set up solely to transfer foreign-currency proceeds to Iran. Golden Global Investment Bank is the second bank that will be sanctioned in connection with the “economic exclusion operations of Iran.” Previously, “Misr Bank,” one of the largest banks in Egypt, had been sanctioned in the United Arab Emirates.

Analysts had warned about the negative consequences of US sanctions on banks that facilitate transfers of currency to Iran for Turkey’s economy. However, it does not appear that sanctions against Golden Global Investment Bank will have a direct impact on Turkey’s economy in the short term. At the end of last year, Golden Global Bank had capital of around 25 billion lira, about $520 million, and in this respect it was the 35th bank in Turkey. That said, the bank does not provide savings accounts or commercial financial accounts and operates only as an investment bank, and the shock caused by US sanctions would affect only this bank’s activities. But the indirect impact of these sanctions is more significant because banks and financial institutions in Turkey will now, out of concern about US penalties, apply stricter controls, and this will increase the cost of transferring currency to Iran. This case may also call Turkey’s political credibility into question, since the US government says that despite Turkey government oversight, Golden Global Bank was established to help transfer currency to Iran. Previously, Halkbank, a state bank accused of transferring $20 billion to Iran, was brought to trial in the United States, but in the end, following an agreement between the bank and the US government, after years, the case was closed this summer.