The US Treasury Department has added Istanbul's Golden Global Yatırım Bankası and its two subsidiaries to the Specially Designated Nationals list, cutting off their eligibility to use US dollar settlements. The Treasury stated that the bank facilitated tens of millions of dollars in transactions for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force and provided cross-border correspondent banking access to Iran.

The two subsidiaries are asset management company Golden Global Portföy Yönetimi and leasing company Golden Global Varlık Kiralama, both located in the Şişli district alongside the parent bank. The investment bank was established in October 2019, with a SWIFT code of GOGYTRIS; the leasing company was established in August 2022; and the asset management company was established in January 2025. The designation is based on Executive Order 13902. The Treasury also issued a general license allowing related transactions to be completed by September 19.

The Treasury accused the bank of being part of Iran's "rahbar" shadow banking network, transferring oil revenues from China to Turkey, which were then exchanged for cash and gold by currency traders; it also claimed that the bank knowingly provided correspondent banking services to Iranian financial institutions, with funds circulating through the Quds Force and the account of Turkish businessman Sitki Ayan, who was sanctioned in 2022. The bank denied the allegations, stating that the entities on the list are not clients and that it will seek legal remedies. Bloomberg reported its capital at approximately $34 million.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent categorized the action under Operation Economic Outcast, initiated on August 24, stating that financial institutions would understand in a painful way that the US is serious, and emphasized that they know who the counterparties are and where they are located. He also previewed actions against another bank this week and one more next week. The previous week, the UAE branch of Egypt's Banque Misr was targeted. Analysts noted that this is the first instance of targeting a bank within a NATO ally's territory in this round of sanctions.

With the dollar eligibility cut off, correspondent banks will preemptively sever ties to avoid secondary sanctions. The general license only allows for two weeks to wind down operations, not to extend business. If oil payments shift to RMB or gold channels, it will increase friction and discounts, but it does not automatically mean Iran's exports will drop to zero.

In market mechanisms, what is being sold are small Turkish investment banks and any intermediaries still willing to handle Iranian oil payments; what is being bought is compliance retreat and premiums for physical gold settlements. Beneficiaries are alternative intermediaries that can provide non-dollar settlements or gold bar channels; those under pressure include the bank's shareholders, counterparties with dollar transactions, and refineries relying on discounts for Iranian oil payment terms. The flow of funds shifts from bank accounts to more expensive exchanges and storage.

The list itself serves as a closure notice; court challenges will not change the current dollar gate.

Source: Public Information