Halkbank

2023: US trial for Iran sanctions violations

On April 19, 2023, the US Supreme Court rejected the claim of sovereign immunity of the Turkish bank Halkbank, accused of violating sanctions against Iran.

In 2019, Halkbank was accused of participating in a scheme to launder billions of dollars in Iranian oil and gas revenues, violating sanctions on Iran.

The funds were used to buy gold, and the transactions were disguised as food and medicine purchases to fall under a humanitarian exemption from sanctions. 

According to the US Department of Justice, as part of this scheme, Halkbank used shell companies to redirect $20 billion to Iran, including $1 billion through the US financial system.

The United States has charged the bank with six counts of fraud, money laundering and sanctions violations, calling it one of the most serious cases of sanctions violations. Halkbank said the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, which protects foreign leaders and governments from U.S. lawsuits, covers state-owned enterprises.

Mehmet Hakan Atilla, the bank's deputy general director, was convicted in 2018 and jailed for a year before being released in 2019 and was greeted as a hero on his return to Turkey.

2022: Record profits amid inflation crisis

In 2022, Turkish banks were among the largest winners who emerged from the worst inflation crisis under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and received record high profits.