Key Points
- Banks and exchange companies ordered to freeze assets of designated individuals and entities
- Sanctions target financial intermediaries, shipping firms and commercial fronts accused of facilitating Houthi operations
- Prosecutors are preparing additional designations against about 120 individuals and companies
ISLAMABAD: Yemen’s Central Bank has designated 569 individuals, companies and ships linked to financial and commercial networks supporting the Houthis.
The Bank has ordered financial institutions to freeze associated assets and block transactions, according to Yemeni banking sources.
The measures form part of efforts by the authorities to restrict funding channels used by the Houthis, who control the capital Sanaa and other parts of Yemen.
The designations target individuals and businesses against facilitating financial operations through commercial fronts, exchange networks and shipping activities.
According to Arab media sources, the central bank issued three directives for banks and exchange companies, requiring them to freeze assets, accounts and properties linked to the listed parties.
The Yemeni central bank also prohibited financial institutions from conducting transactions with designated individuals and entities, opening accounts for them, or acting on their behalf.
The sanctions include 445 names covered by one directive, with additional designations issued under instructions from the Public Prosecutor.
The lists encompass shipping companies, financial intermediaries and other commercial entities suspected of supporting Houthi-linked networks.
Yemen’s central bank orders monitoring
The central bank has ordered commercial banks and exchange companies to monitor incoming and outgoing remittances involving designated parties.
It also requires them to submit relevant information to Yemen’s Financial Information Unit and its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing department.
The reporting requirements aim to improve financial surveillance and prevent the banking system from the use of funds through concealed ownership structures or intermediaries.
Yemeni banking sources said the Public Prosecutor was preparing another round of sanctions against approximately 120 individuals and companies.
The anticipated designations would further target exchange networks operating in Houthi-controlled areas that authorities suspect of involvement in currency speculation and smuggling.
The central bank is also intensifying oversight of domestic remittances and enforcing monetary regulations intended to curb unauthorised currency circulation.
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The measures are part of a wider effort by Yemen’s internationally recognised authorities to restrict illicit financial flows and strengthen controls against money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
The reported designations come as Yemen’s divided financial system remains a source of tension between the internationally recognised government and the
Houthis, who have maintained separate administrative and economic structures in areas under their control.
The central bank’s directives aim to constrain the financial networks that authorities say help sustain Houthi operations.
Yemen, which has endured more than a decade of conflict, remains divided between rival authorities, with the war severely disrupting its economy, banking system and public finances.
