US judge dismisses Halkbank criminal case after deal with Trump administration

A federal judge in New York has dismissed the US Justice Department’s criminal case against Turkey’s state-run Halkbank after the Trump administration reached a deal with the lender, Reuters reported. For banks and PSPs, the important bit is not the courtroom theatre; it is the sanctions-compliance terms that remain attached to the bank even after the case is closed.

1. US District Judge Richard Berman, based in Manhattan, approved the dismissal at a hearing on Wednesday, ending a prosecution that began in 2019. Halkbank said on Turkey’s Public Disclosure Platform (KAP) that the criminal case in the United States had been “definitively and finally closed.”
2. The agreement was announced in March and was expected to remove a long-running source of tension between Turkey and the United States. Halkbank shares rose sharply on the İstanbul stock exchange after the deal was announced.
3. Halkbank was charged during Trump’s first term with helping Iran evade US sanctions. Prosecutors accused the bank of secretly moving $20 billion in restricted Iranian funds, converting oil revenue into gold and cash, and using fake food shipments to justify transfers of oil proceeds.
4. Under the agreement, Halkbank pleaded not guilty and did not admit wrongdoing. No money changed hands. The bank is barred from entering transactions that benefit Iran and must work with a monitor to review its sanctions and anti-money laundering compliance.
5. After the March announcement, Berman paused the case for 90 days so Halkbank could show compliance with the terms. Halkbank hired Ernst & Young to review its compliance policies. The case had moved through several US courts, and in October the US Supreme Court let stand a lower court decision allowing it to proceed.

The timing matters for cross-border banking because this was never just a criminal case file. It sat at the intersection of sanctions exposure, state ownership, and access to the US financial system — the sort of mix that makes correspondent banks, acquiring partners, and compliance teams reach for the file and the calendar at the same time.