The U.S. Department of the Treasury included "Keremet Bank" in the SDN (Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons) list for its alleged involvement in sanctions evasion organized jointly with Russian authorities and Promsvyazbank. The latter plays a key role in financing Russia's defense sector and has been under U.S. sanctions since 2022.

According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, "Keremet Bank" has facilitated Promsvyazbank in cross-border transactions since the summer of 2024. The decision to include it in the sanctions list was reportedly expedited after the bank's majority stake was sold last year to a company linked to a Russian businessman.

The final straw was that the new shareholder structure allegedly facilitated the continuation of activities aimed at circumventing international restrictions.

The bank denies the allegations. In a statement, it said: "The bank will appeal to the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to contest its inclusion in the sanctions list, as the claims of violations are unfounded."

At the same time, the sanctions raise questions not only about the bank. "Keremet Bank" was owned by the Ministry of Finance of Kyrgyzstan during the period referred to as "problematic" by the U.S. Department of Treasury.

In March 2024, the Ministry of Finance acquired 97.45% of the bank's shares from the National Bank for 7.1 billion KGS. In December last year, a controlling stake (75%) was sold to a private investor for 6.5 billion KGS, but the state retained a 22.45% share in the bank.

Deputy Head of the Cabinet of Ministers Daniyar Amangeldiev, in a conversation with an "Akchabar" correspondent, expressed surprise and concern over the U.S. decision to impose sanctions on "Keremet Bank".

"The actions of our partners are puzzling because "Keremet Bank" was indeed a state-owned bank and, during the period in question, was under external management by the National Bank. We were preparing it for privatization. No suspicious operations were conducted there. Even after the sale of the controlling stake, the bank remained under close scrutiny. There were no sanctioned goods or transactions, let alone any dealings with Promsvyazbank," — he emphasized.

According to the Deputy Head of the Cabinet of Ministers, the authorities have already requested urgent consultations with the U.S. Department of Treasury.

"Today, negotiations will take place on this matter. We are ready to present all documents, including data on the bank's payment operations, to prove that the bank was not involved in any dubious schemes. We were extremely surprised by this information, and it is now important to understand the reasons behind this decision by the U.S. authorities," — he added.

Daniyar Amangeldiev emphasized that the sanctions jeopardize the implementation of the investment agreement regarding "Keremet Bank", which includes specific commitments over the years.

"This decision undermines the fulfillment of the investment commitments regarding the implementation of "Keremet Bank". As you know, there were obligations specified over the years," — he concluded.