Michael Hernandez and Mucahit Avcioglu
09 March 2026•Update: 09 March 2026
WASHINGTON
Turkish state lender Halkbank and the US Justice Department have agreed to enter a deferred prosecution agreement that would effectively end ongoing litigation, according to court records unsealed Monday.
US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton wrote in a letter to US District Court Judge Richard Berman that the Justice Department "believes the resolution of these charges against Halkbank on the terms and conditions set forth in the Agreement is in the best interests of the United States."
"This agreement by Halkbank furthers the United States' compelling interests in combatting terrorist financing and financial support for the government of Iran," the US attorney wrote.
"Accordingly, this Agreement is strongly in the public interest. The national security and foreign policy interests furthered by the Agreement are unique and extraordinary," he added, also referring to Turkish diplomatic efforts that helped facilitate the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza and a 2025 ceasefire in the war-ravaged Palestinian enclave.
Under the agreement, Halkbank will engage with a third-party to review its sanctions and anti-money laundering compliance efforts, the Justice Department said. A subsequent report will be submitted to the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control and the US attorney's office "to remediate the offense conduct charged in the superseding indictment," Clayton wrote.
The pact will need to be approved by the court, and Berman said the matter would be discussed during a previously scheduled hearing on Wednesday.
In a statement published on Türkiye's Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), Halkbank said under the settlement with the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, Halkbank will not admit any criminal wrongdoing and will not pay judicial or administrative fines.
The statement said that the agreement requires an expert firm to submit a compliance report to the Office of Foreign Assets Control, with a copy provided to prosecutors. Afterward, Halkbank and the US Attorney’s Office will jointly request dismissal of the case at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Once the court approves the dismissal, the criminal proceedings against the bank in the US –ongoing for around nine years – will be fully concluded. The foreign assets office has also informed the bank that it is closing its administrative review without further action.
Halkbank said the settlement is expected to strengthen its financial position by improving access to international funding, correspondent banking networks, and global markets.
"Serving our country's economy for 88 years, our Bank will maintain its activities in compliance with all local and international regulations and in a robust, trustworthy and seamless manner in the future just like it has done so in the past, and will continue to contribute to the growth of both the banking sector and our country's economy," it said in a statement.
The US Supreme Court in October rejected an appeal by Halkbank to review a lower court's ruling that the public lender was not immune to prosecution under common law.
