UANI Calls on Pedro Duarte Neves, other International Banking Regulators to Take Action to End SWIFT’s Relationships with Iranian Banks

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 15, 2012
Contact: Nathan Carleton, [email protected]
Phone: (212) 554-3296

UANI Calls on Pedro Duarte Neves, other International Banking Regulators to Take Action to End SWIFT's Relationships with Iranian Banks

New York, NY -On Wednesday, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) called on Banco de Portugal's Pedro Duarte Neves and other international banking regulators to take action that would put SWIFT in compliance with EU and U.S. banking laws.

UANI has been in consultations this month with international banking regulatory officials including Mr. Neves, who serves on the Board of Supervisors of the European Banking Authority.

Recently, Mr. Neves informed UANI that he does not plan to take action against SWIFT, because he "does not have regulatory or supervisory powers over [SWIFT]." Mr. Neves also argued that his bank "does not have a special relationship with SWIFT beyond that typical of Eurosystem central bank ..."

Said UANI President, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace:

Mr. Neves and his colleagues in the European banking community must take action to put SWIFT in compliance with Iran sanctions laws. International regulators have a responsibility to enforce laws and curtail illegal activity, and they should take that responsibility seriously.

Every day that SWIFT continues to allow Iran's banks and institutions access to the SWIFT network is a day that the Iranian regime is able to continue exploiting the international financial system to fund terrorism and pursue nuclear weapons. International banking regulators need to do what it takes to end SWIFT's indefensible relationships with those institutions.

UANI wrote to Mr. Neves on February 1, calling on him to "take immediate action to ensure SWIFT's compliance with applicable U.S. and EU sanctions law and to ensure that SWIFT complies with its own rules related to corporate governance and membership eligibility."

UANI launched its SWIFT campaign on January 30, submitting a detailed legal explanation to SWIFT explaining how it violates U.S. and EU sanctions--as well as its own bylaws--by providing sanctioned Iranian banks with BICs and access to the SWIFT system.

That week, members of the U.S. Senate drafted and introduced an amendment that would sanction SWIFT. SWIFT, after initially defending its work with Iran, subsequently pledged to "find the right multilateral legal framework which will enable SWIFT to address the issues."

In addition to Mr. Neves, the following international banking regulators received letters from UANI on February 1, along with a copy of UANI's original letter to SWIFT:

Christian Noyer: Governor, Chairman of the General Council, Banque De France

Anne Le Lorier: First Deputy Governor, Banque De France

Dr. Jens Weidmann: President, Deutsche Bundesbank

Sabine Lautenschlager: Deputy President, Deutsche Bundesbank

Ignazio Visco: Governor, Banca D'Italia

Fabrizio Saccomanni: Director General, Banca D'Italia

Giovanni Carosio: Deputy Director General, Banca D'Italia

Masaaki Shirakawa: Governor, Bank of Japan

Hirohide Yamaguchi: Deputy Governor, Bank of Japan

Klass Knot: President, De Nederlandsche Bank

J.F. van Duyne: Chairman, De Nederlandsche Bank

Stefan Ingves: Chairman of the Executive Board and Governor, the Riksbank

Kerstin af Jochnick: First Deputy Governor, the Riksbank

Hansueli Raggenbass: President of the Bank Council, Swiss National Bank

Thomas J. Jordan: Vice Chairman of the Governing Board, Swiss National Bank

Sir Mervyn King: Governor, Bank of England

Charles Bean: Deputy Governor, Monetary Policy, Bank of England

Christine Lagarde: Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

David Lipton: First Deputy Managing Director, International Monetary Fund

Angel Gurria: Secretary-General, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development

Pier Carlo Padoan: Deputy Secretary-General and Chief of Staff, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development

Jamie Caruana: General Manager, Bank for International Settlements

Herve Hannoun: Deputy General Manager, Bank for International Settlements

Andrea Enria: Chairperson, European Banking Authority

Helmut Ettl: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Austria

Mathias Dewatripont: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Belgium

Rumen Simeonov: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Bulgaria

Costas S. Poullis: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Cyprus

David Rozumek: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Czech Republic

Ulrik Nodgaard: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Denmark

Raul Malmstein: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Estonia

Jukka Vesala: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Finland

Daniele Nouy: Board Member, European Banking Authority, France

Raimund Roseler: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Germany

Ioannis Gousios: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Greece

Karoly Szasz: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Hungary

Matthew Elderfield: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Ireland

Giovanni Carosio: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Italy

Kristaps Zakulis: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Latvia

Vytautas Valvonis: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Lithuania

Claude Simon: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Luxembourg

Andre Camilleri: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Malta

Jan Sijbrand: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Netherlands

Andrzej Reich: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Poland

Nicolae Cinteza: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Romania

Vladimir Dvoracek: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Slovakia

Stanislava Zadravec Caprirolo: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Slovenia

Francisco Javier-Ariztegui Yanez: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Spain

Martin Andersson: Board Member, European Banking Authority, Sweden

Hector Sants: Board Member, European Banking Authority, UK

Mark J. Carney: Governor, Bank of Canada

Tiff Macklem: Senior Deputy Governor, Bank of Canada

Ben S. Bernanke: Chairman, United States Federal Reserve

Janet Y. Yellen: Vice Chair, United States Federal Reserve

Martin J. Gruenberg: Chairman and Vice Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Thomas J. Curry: Director, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

John Walsh: Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Richard Cordray: Director, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Elizabeth A. Duke: Board Member, United States Federal Reserve

Daniel K. Tarullo: Board Member, United States Federal Reserve

Sarah Bloom Raskin: Board Member, United States Federal Reserve

Click here to read UANI's letter to Mr. Neves and other international banking regulators.
Click here to read UANI's full letter to SWIFT.
Click here to send a message to SWIFT.

###