Wall Street Journal Reveals Zhejiang Chouzhou Commercial Bank as a Conduit for Russian and Iranian Sanctions Evasion
On November 3, The Wall Street Journal reported that among approximately 3,500 leaked A7 transactions, Chouzhou Bank appeared most frequently as the receiving bank. In February 2025, a Kyrgyz front company ordered 40,000 kilograms of molybdenum trioxide from a Chinese supplier, with a payment of about $1.5 million wired to an account at the bank. Both the Biden and Trump administrations had internally flagged the bank but did not impose sanctions. Chouzhou Bank stated it has launched an internal investigation, while China opposes unilateral U.S. sanctions.