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Woori Bank, IBK to stop Iran payments due to U.S. sanctions

November 2, 2018

SEOUL, Nov. 2 (Yonhap) — Two South Korean banks will stop accepting payments from Iran in line with the start of U.S. sanctions on the Islamic Republic’s petroleum exports, a financial source said Friday.

Woori Bank and state-run Industrial Bank of Korea are the two main channels of money between South Korean firms and Iran, but they have instructed local firms to complete payments by Sunday, a day before the U.S. sanctions against Iran take effect.

From Nov. 5, the two South Korean banks will stop handling payments from Iran, according to the source.

The U.S. has pressed South Korea and some other countries to halt their oil imports from Iran or face so-called secondary sanctions following the May announcement of its exit from the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran.

South Korea, one of largest importers of Iranian oil, is seeking sanction waivers.