US sanctions London-based Cuban bank

WASHINGTON: The United States announced sanctions Thursday against Havin Bank LTD, a London-based Cuban entity also known as Havana International Bank, dealing a blow to the Cuban financial system. The Treasury Department said it had placed the bank on its Office of Foreign Assets Control black list.

The bank has been in operation since August 1973, and is the only one with entirely Cuban capital outside Cuba. Its principal shareholder is the Central Bank of Cuba. From its perch in London, the bank maintains a network of 400 correspondents around the world that provide banking services for the Cuban market.