The US criminal case against Turkey’s state-owned lender Halkbank, which was charged in 2019 with helping Iran evade US sanctions, is moving again after a federal judge in New York rescheduled a status hearing for March 3 following last month’s sudden cancellation of an earlier court session, Bloomberg reported.
US District Judge Richard Berman reset the status conference in an order issued Tuesday, according to Bloomberg. The same court had set a January 27 hearing to discuss how the case would proceed toward trial after the US Supreme Court declined in October to hear Halkbank’s appeal seeking dismissal on grounds of sovereign immunity.
Berman canceled that January hearing at the last minute and did not immediately set a new date.
US prosecutors in Manhattan indicted Halkbank in 2019, accusing the bank of fraud, money laundering and sanctions-related offenses tied to an alleged scheme to move Iranian funds through the international financial system in violation of US restrictions.
The US Department of Justice has said the bank, whose majority shareholder is the Turkish government, helped Iran gain access to billions of dollars while deceiving US regulators.
Halkbank shares fell after the January hearing was canceled and rose on Wednesday after the March 3 date was set.
The case has long strained ties between Ankara and Washington. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan raised the issue with US President Donald Trump during a White House meeting in September and later said he expected a resolution. Ankara reportedly expects a settlement with what it views as a manageable fine.
The case is listed as US v. Turkiye Halk Bankasi AS, 15-cr-00867, in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.