Trump Turns Up Heat on Iran’s Money Network, Puts $1.8 Billion Shadow-Banking Network in Crosshairs: Why China Could Be Next
The Trump administration is expanding its Iran sanctions campaign beyond companies to include foreign banks that help Tehran move money through the global financial system.
The Treasury Department on Aug. 28 proposed cutting off five United Arab Emirates-based branches of Egypt’s state-owned Banque Misr from the U.S. financial system. The branches processed about $1.8 billion for 103 companies that Treasury says were potentially part of Iranian shadow-banking networks between January 2024 and June 2026, according to Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, as discussed in a Wall Street Journal commentary published Sunday.
How Iran Moves Money
Shadow banking in this context refers to the network of shell companies, trading businesses and other financial channels used to move money while obscuring its connection to Iran.
The network operates across places including the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong, helping move oil and petrochemical proceeds around U.S. sanctions. The targeted Banque Misr branches were among the foreign financial institutions connected to that flow, according to the report.
The latest action follows Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s broader "Economic D-Day" campaign against Iran’s financial network. The strategy includes targeting intermediaries outside Iran and threatens foreign institutions that facilitate money laundering with restrictions on access to the U.S. dollar system.
Bessent previously said, "Any entity that facilitates money laundering on behalf of Iran will be removed from the U.S. dollar system."
Why China Is In Focus
China is becoming a bigger test for the campaign because of its role in Iran’s oil trade. China bought more than 80% of Iran’s exported oil in 2025, while the sanctions campaign has also reached companies in mainland China and Hong Kong without targeting a major Chinese bank.
Bessent has warned that countries maintaining economic ties with Tehran could face severe consequences.
When asked whether the campaign would extend to China, he declined to provide specifics, saying, "many conversations are best to have in private."
The commentary notes that China’s reported oil imports from Malaysia far exceed Malaysia’s own reported exports, which the author argues could signal additional sanctions-evasion activity.
