UAE Central Bank Orders Urgent Forensic Review of Banque Misr Branches

The Central Bank of the UAE ordered a special and urgent forensic review of Banque Misr's UAE branches, covering the period identified by U.S. authorities and transactions involving companies they named. The regulator said it is studying options for the branches' status if a proposed U.S. measure takes effect, while considering obligations to UAE customers. U.S. Treasury officials proposed revoking the branches' correspondent-banking access and alleged they processed about $1.8 billion from January 2024 through June 2026 for 103 companies potentially linked to Iranian shadow-banking networks. The U.S. proposal applies only to Banque Misr UAE, not the bank's operations elsewhere.