What happened
The U.S. Department of State announced sanctions against Cuba's state-owned Banco Internacional de Comercio S.A. (BICSA) for providing services to Iran's sanctioned Karafarin Bank, citing links to terrorism and malign foreign influence.
What compliance teams should check
- Re-screen customers and counterparties for exposure to BICSA and Karafarin Bank
- Update sanctions screening systems for new designations under E.O. 14404
- Review transactions involving Cuban and Iranian financial institutions
FOR COMPLIANCE TEAMS
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Marco Rubio, Secretary of State Sanctioning Cuban State-Owned Banco Internacional de Comercio, S.A. (BICSA) Press Statement October 15, 2026 President Trump has been absolutely clear: under his administration, the United States will not tolerate terrorism, organized crime or extra-hemispheric forces spreading anti-American influence in our region. For too long, Communist Cuba has been allowed to operate as an outpost for malign actors and terror groups – including the Islamic Republic of Iran, the world’s number one state sponsor of terrorism – to target the United States. Cuba’s BANCO INTERNACIONAL DE COMERCIO S.A. (BICSA) has provided services to the designated Iran’s Karafarin Bank since at least 2022. The Department of the Treasury sanctioned Karafarin Bank pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13902 in 2020. Today, in concert with a Department of the Treasury action on Iranian financial actors, I am sanctioning the Cuban state-owned BICSA pursuant to Section 2(a)(i)(A) of E.O. 14404 for operating in or having operated in the financial services sector of the Cuban economy. Let me be clear: the Trump Administration will not tolerate a rogue state hosting hostile foreign military, intelligence and terror operations less than a hundred miles from the American homeland. We will continue to aggressively identify and eliminate the Cuban regime’s financial and security interconnections with Iran and other dangerous and hostile states and actors. The Department’s actions are being taken pursuant to E.O. 14404, which authorizes sweeping sanctions on Cuba, including against persons who support the Cuban regime’s security apparatus and those responsible for repression in Cuba and other threats to U.S. national security. These actions also further both E.O. 14380, “ Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of Cuba ” and National Security Presidential Memorandum 5 , which directs the Executive Branch to improve human rights, encourage the rule of law, foster free markets and free enterprise, and promote democracy in Cuba. Sanctions Implications As a result of today’s sanctions actions, and in accordance with E.O. 14404 of May 1, 2026, “Imposing Sanctions on Those Responsible for Repression in Cuba and for Threats to U.S. National Security and Foreign Policy,” all property and interests in property of the designated person described above that are in the United States or in possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Additionally, all entities that are owned individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Any transaction or dealing by U.S. persons or persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United States in property or interests of designated or otherwise blocked persons are prohibited unless authorized or exempt. These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any blocked person and the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person. Foreign persons that engage in transactions with persons designated pursuant to E.O. 14404—or that operate or have operated in the energy, defense and related materiel, metals and mining, financial services, or security sector of the Cuban economy, as identified in E.O. 14404—are themselves at risk of sanctions. Non-U.S. persons, including foreign financial institutions, should proceed with caution in any dealings with a party sanctioned under this authority. Actions to return assets to a sanctioned party or transfer them to another jurisdiction for potential use by the target expose non-U.S. persons to significant sanctions risk. All property and interests in property of persons that are blocked pursuant to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) are blocked. The CACR prohibits persons subject to U.S. jurisU.S. Department of State, 15 Oct 2026, 17:17 UTC, state.gov
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15 Oct 2026
HIGH