US Plans New Bank Sanctions in Intensified Iran Pressure Campaign

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration plans to impose sanctions on another bank this week as part of its intensified efforts to economically isolate Iran, according to an interview with The Associated Press on Sunday.

Bessent declined to name the bank targeted by the upcoming sanctions. The announcement follows last week's action in which Washington said it would cut off the United Arab Emirates' operations of Banque Misr, Egypt's second-largest bank, from the S. financial system, accusing the bank of doing business with the Iranian government.

"This is going to be financial violence if we have to," Bessent told the AP. "We are showing people that we know who you are, you know who you are, and this has got to stop."

In remarks to Reuters, Bessent said the next step may be cutting off an institution entirely from the dollar-based financial system. "You're going to see a lot more of these every week," he said, speaking ahead of a Group of 20 finance leaders meeting in Asheville, North Carolina. "We're starting with the banks, and we're telling the banks it's not OK to have Iranian money and to aid the regime."

G20 Meetings and China

Bessent spoke with the AP ahead of the G20 meetings in Asheville, where he will meet individually with his counterparts from the world's major and developing economies to encourage cooperation against Iran.

The administration has recently signaled a shift from military strikes to economic pressure during a war that recently reached the six-month mark, promising what it called an "economic D-Day" against Iran.

Bessent told the AP he would speak to his Chinese counterparts at the G20 meeting and that "all options are on the table" regarding sanctioning Beijing for its continued purchases of Iranian oil. China is Iran's biggest trading partner and leading buyer of its oil.

Bessent rejected the idea that the administration was reluctant to confront China, calling it "a completely false narrative that the media picked up on." He insisted that China and the S. agree on the need to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

Escalating Hostilities

Hostilities between the S. and Iran flared on Sunday. S. forces struck Iranian rocket launchers on the Strait of Hormuz in their first military action in a month, breaking a lull in fighting. Iran vowed to retaliate for what it called a deadly attack.

The administration has mostly relied on warnings rather than new sanctions against Iran's trading partners, though Treasury's first official action in this campaign of economic pressure was a proposed rulemaking on Friday, which would, if finalized, sever the Emirati branches of Banque Misr from access to the S. financial system.

Washington has recently stepped up efforts to economically pressure Tehran amid deadlocked truce talks. Last week, the Treasury Department imposed new sanctions on nearly 60 individuals and entities that Washington accused of being part of networks helping Iran generate oil revenue, procure weapons, and conduct cyber-operations.

Iran has rejected the latest S. sanctions, with Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Ali Madanizadeh saying they will fail.

Bessent is preparing to host the meeting of the G20's finance leaders in Asheville, North Carolina.