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European banks, some of which have been punished for breaking
sanctions imposed on Iran, have shown reluctance to resume trade
ties until they get concrete reassurance that they will not be
hit again.
Asked by a lawmaker in parliament what discussions he was having
with the United States on banking sanctions in order to
encourage more British businesses to invest in Iran, Hammond
said a meeting was due to take place in London.
"There is a meeting happening this afternoon ... between the
Iranian Central Bank, the United States Treasury and
international banks based in London in an attempt to try to make
some progress on this matter," Hammond said.
The meeting follows a visit by U.S. Secretary of State John
Kerry in May where he told Europe's top banks they have nothing
to fear from resuming business with Iran as long as they make
proper checks on trade partners.
The banks however reiterated their concerns after the meeting,
with lenders including Standard Chartered <STAN.L> and Societe
Generale saying they had no immediate plans to resume commercial
activities with Iran.
Nine executives from leading European banks took part in the May
meeting, including Deutsche Bank <DBKGn.DE> Chief Executive John
Cryan and HSBC's <HSBA.L> UK head Antonio Simoes.
It was not immediately clear which banks would attend Tuesday's
meeting.
Hammond said at that time that the objective was to draw Iran
back into the international community, overcoming banks'
concerns that they risk further punishment for
sanctions-busting.
(Reporting by Kylie MacLellan and William James, writing by
Lawrence White; editing by Ralph Boulton)
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