U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that the Trump administration plans to sanction another bank this week as part of a campaign to cut off financial transactions with Iran.
Bessent made the remarks in an interview with The Associated Press ahead of Group of 20 meetings in Asheville, North Carolina. He is set to hold individual talks with counterparts from major and developing economies during the gatherings.
The aim of those meetings, he said, is to press governments to join the economic isolation of Iran and to warn against continued dealings with Tehran. Countries that keep financial ties to the Islamic Republic risk retaliation from Washington.
“This is going to be financial violence if we have to,” Bessent said. “We are showing people that we know who you are, you know who you are, and this has got to stop.”
The bank sanction would extend a wider effort announced recently by Bessent to sever the remaining financial links between Iran and the global banking system. Iran is already among the most heavily sanctioned states in the world.
The Treasury did not name the bank targeted for this week’s action or specify its jurisdiction. Details of the measure are expected once the designation is formally issued.
The campaign forms part of a broader push by the administration to tighten the financial squeeze on Tehran and press China to cooperate. Bessent has previously urged Beijing, a major buyer of Iranian oil, to reduce its trade with the country.
The G20 meetings in Asheville give Bessent a forum to seek wider backing for the measures. He plans to use the bilateral sessions to encourage governments to end business with Iran.