瑞士信贷违反伊朗制裁被罚5.36亿

Swiss banking group Credit Suisse has agreed to pay a $536m (£329m) fine for violating US sanctions against Iran.

瑞士银行集团瑞士信贷同意就违反美国对伊朗的制裁一案支付5.36亿美元罚款。

Credit Suisse has said it takes the matter seriously

Settlement papers say Credit Suisse systematically hid the identity of its Iranian clients when moving millions of dollars on their behalf.

The bank is also accused of helping Libya, Sudan and Burma evade逃避 sanctions制裁，处罚.

The bank said it took the matter seriously and was committed to the highest standards of integrity正直，诚实 and regulatory compliance法规遵从.

Credit Suisse is the second bank to pay hundreds of millions of dollars for helping its clients bypass忽视，绕开 US laws.

Transactions quadrupled

In January, British bank Lloyds-TSB paid a fine of $350m to US authorities after prosecutors accused it of faking records so clients in Iran, Libya and Sudan could do business with US institutions.

The US government has the power to take proceedings against foreign financial institutions - even for actions involving other countries - if they do some of their business in America.

US government papers filed in the latest case said: "Credit Suisse's internal communications showed a continuous dialogue about evading US sanctions spanning approximately a decade."

The court papers said that when Lloyds ceased its involvement in 2003, the Iranian banks moved their business to Credit Suisse.

That led to the Swiss bank quadrupling四倍 its Iranian transactions in US dollars. Between 2002 and 2005, they increased from about 50,000 to some 200,000.

According to the US government, by 2006 the bank had begun winding up停业清算 its sanctions-breaking business.