Bank Mellat

Bank Mellat (Persian: بانک ملت‎, lit. People's Bank) is a private Iranian bank. Its name means "Bank of the Nation". Bank Mellat was established in 1980, with a paid capital of Rials 33.5 billion as a merger of ten pre-revolution private banks, comprising Tehran, Dariush, Pars, Etebarat Taavoni & Tozie, Iran & Arab, Bein-al-melalie-Iran, Omran, Bimeh Iran, Tejarat Khareji Iran and Farhangian.

Mellat Bank
TypePublic
TSE: BMLT1
ISINIRO1BMLT0007
IndustryBanking
Financial services
Insurance
Predecessor
  • Bank Pars
  • Tehran Bank
  • Omran Bank
  • Farhangian Bank
  • Darius Bank
FoundedJuly 22, 1980; 39 years ago
Headquarters327 Taleqani St, Tehran, Iran
Area served
Key people
Mohammad Bigdeli (CEO)
ProductsConsumer banking, corporate banking, finance and insurance, investment banking, mortgage loans, private banking, private equity, wealth management, credit cards,
RevenueUS$6.761 billion (2016)[1]
Total assetsUS$ 62 billion (2011)[2]
OwnerGovernment of Islamic Republic of Iran (%16.99)

Atieh Mellat Fund (%6.44)

Saba Tamin Investment Co. (%5.57)
Number of employees
19,876 (2019)
SubsidiariesMellat Investment Bank, Persia International Bank
Websiteen.bankmellat.ir

Currently, the bank's capital amounts to Rls 13,100 billion and it is one of the largest commercial banks in the Islamic Republic of Iran, ranking among the top 1000 banks of the world.

In 2007 the Iranian government started the process of privatising the bank as part of a policy of selling 80% of state-owned stakes in banking, media, transportation and mining companies.[3]

The Bank Mellat London branch was merged with the Bank Tejarat branch to form Persia International Bank PLC.

Sanctions and court actions

The United States Department of the Treasury has mentioned Bank Mellat and Persia International in their watchlist of Iranian banks which may be trading in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1803.[4]

On 29 January 2013, the European General Court in Luxembourg ruled to annul the European Union sanctions in place since 2010 against Bank Mellat on grounds of supporting the Iranian nuclear and missile programs, stating that the basic rights of the bank had been denied and there was no evidence supporting the claim. Bank Mellat intends to sue for damages.[5][6] On 18 February 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union concurred with the General Court decision that the reasons given for sanctions were too vague.[7]

A related action in the British courts was taken to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom in March 2013, causing the court to hold a closed hearing for the first time.[8] In June 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that the UK government's sanctions on the bank had been unlawful with one justice stating that targeting Bank Mellat was "irrational and disproportionate".[9][10] Bank Mellat is claiming damages from the UK government for the loss of business between 2009 and 2013.[11] The damages hearing was scheduled for June 2019, with Bank Mellat seeking damages of $1.7 billion.[12] On the first day of the trial the parties agreed a settlement for a confidential sum.[10][13] The Times later reported that £1.25 billion plus interest was paid to Bank Mellat, through a third country entity to avoid US sanctions.[14][15] However the British government stated in parliament "the amount paid in respect of the settlement was €91,352,709.35", plus £1 million for legal costs,[16] which Bank Mellat concurred with in an official statement.[17]

References
  1. "Top 100 Iranian Companies". Archived from the original on 2018-06-12.
  2. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-03-09. Retrieved 2012-02-21.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "Iran to sell 80pc of Bank Mellat". Dawn. Karachi. AFP. 11 December 2007. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  4. "Iranian Banks". The United States department of the Treasury. Archived from the original on 2008-05-30.
  5. "Iran bank to sue EU after winning sanction list case". Reuters. 30 January 2013. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  6. Ulrich Unterweger (4 April 2013). "General Court rulings on Iranian Banks threaten to torpedo EU's foreign policy ambitions". European Law Blog. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  7. "European Union and United Kingdom Sanctions Update: March 2016". K&L Gates. 17 March 2016. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
  8. Maya Lester (21 March 2013). "First ever closed hearing in the UK Supreme Court - Bank Mellat's case". European Sanctions - Law and practice. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  9. Lester, Maya. "UK Supreme Court quashes Order against Bank Mellat". European Sanctions blog. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  10. Jane Croft; Andrew England; Sarah Provan (18 June 2019). "UK settles £1.3bn lawsuit with Iran's Bank Mellat after 10 years". Financial Times. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  11. Colin Freeman (18 August 2013). "Iranian bank sues over sanctions". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  12. Cross, Michael (18 March 2019). "Court of Appeal rejects Iranian bank's secrecy plea". Law Society Gazette. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  13. Ridley, Kirstin (18 June 2019). "Britain settles sanctions dispute with Iran's Bank Mellat". Reuters. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  14. Philp, Catherine (4 October 2019). "UK dodged sanctions to settle with Iranian Bank Mellat". The Times. London. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  15. "Iran claims 'victory' after bank compensated by Britain". France 24. AFP. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  16. Glen, John (14 October 2019). "Bank Mellat:Written question - 337". House of Commons. UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  17. "Iran's Bank Mellat rejects reports it got $1.6bn from UK Treasury". PressTV. Tehran. 5 October 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
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