The bank asked the court to stop the case on the grounds that it enjoys sovereign immunity under US law, but the judges considered that the charges “fall under the commercial activity exception” to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
The bank is accused of “participating for years in a scheme to launder billions of dollars in Iranian oil and natural gas revenues in violation of US sanctions.”
The money was used to buy gold and then disguise the remittances by including them as sanctions-free purchases of food and medicine on humanitarian grounds, according to court documents.
According to the lawsuit, Halkbank used front companies to transfer $20 billion to Iran, including $1 billion through the US financial system.
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