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After French giant BNP Paribas, other big European banks like Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank and UniCredit may be in the cross-hairs of US authorities for sanctions-busting.
US authorities on Monday slammed BNP, France’s largest bank, with a record $8.9 billion in penalties for violating US economic sanctions against Iran, Sudan and other countries and pleaded guilty to criminal charges.
The blow raised speculation that some of its rivals in Europe would be punished, but less severely.
The United States has focused its investigations on dollar operations of a handful of European banks with countries blacklisted by the US: Iran, Sudan, Cuba, Syria and North Korea.
The probes, begun in 2009, are looking at the alleged transfer of billions of dollars to the accounts of blacklisted entities, which benefited from a US legal loophole that closed in 2008.
The investigations are being led by several US authorities: the Justice and Treasury departments, the Federal Reserve and New York state’s Department of Financial Services.
French bank Societe Generale recently opened an internal investigation and said it was holding talks with the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the Treasury’s agency that enforces US economic sanctions.
French rival Credit Agricole is investigating dollar transactions, especially by Credit Agricole CIB, its corporate and investment banking arm.
Both banks say they are cooperating with US authorities.
Germany’s largest bank, Deutsche Bank, is suspected of having business transactions with entities in Sudan, Iran and Syria, according to people close to the situation.
Deutsche Bank has steadfastly denied allegations that it has violated US sanctions. Credit Suisse analysts estimated the German bank is facing a $3.3 billion US fine.
Deutsche Bank insists that a US penalty would not weigh on its operating profits or sully its reputation.
The second-largest German bank, Commerzbank, revealed in 2010 that its Iran—linked dollar transactions were under investigation by the United States. It has not estimated the size of a potential penalty.
US authorities also are investigating the German subsidiary of Italy’s largest bank, UniCredit, for transactions with Iran. UniCredit has set aside more than $1.4 billion for legal costs.
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