Since the coup, leading international financial institutions have carried out transactions with Inwa Bank, documents show.
Big banks, including Australia’s ANZ, are continuing to do business with a bank owned by Myanmar’s military administration despite a bloody crackdown on anti-coup protesters, according to an advocacy group and leaked documents.
ANZ, one of Australia’s “big four” banks, and Hong Kong-based insurer AIA were used by the military congress-owned Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC) to transfer funds to Inwa Bank in August and September 2021, Justice told Myanmar. Referring to issued bank documents.
Malaysia’s Edotco Edotco, which leases towers to Myanmar mobile operator Mytel, used ANZ to conduct transactions with Inwa Bank accounts in April and June 2021, according to a report released by the activist group on Wednesday.
Singapore’s UOB, one of Southeast Asia’s largest banks, facilitated transactions between the Chinese shipping company and MEC in June and July last year.
The Singaporean lender was used as a conduit between Myanmar-based Lamintayar, a powdered milk supplier, and several of its executives.
Meanwhile, BIDV, a lender jointly owned by the State Bank of Vietnam and South Korea’s KB Hana Bank, has made at least 18 transactions with Telecom International Myanmar, which is part of MEC, Justice for Myanmar reported.
The leaked ENWA bank documents were obtained and published online by Distributed Denial of Secrets, a self-proclaimed transparency group that regularly releases leaked data from governments and businesses.
A UOB spokesperson said the bank could not comment on individual customer relationships but would implement “enhanced due diligence in customer relationships and transactions involving Myanmar where possible.”
“We are monitoring the situation closely and at the same time ensuring compliance with local and international laws and regulations,” a spokesperson told Al Jazeera. “As we implement enhanced due diligence measures, we will ensure that the flow of humanitarian aid, legitimate non-profit organizations and remittances are not disrupted.”
Al Jazeera has contacted ANZ, BIDV and AIA for comment.
An ANZ spokesperson quoted by Justice for Myanmar said the bank was monitoring the situation in Myanmar and working in accordance with all laws.
They must comply with all applicable laws in the regions in which they operate, including the requirements of advanced national organizations such as the United Nations and the European Union, the spokesperson said.
According to a 2019 independent fact-finding mission by the United Nations Human Rights Council, Inwa Bank played a major role in Myanmar’s military-owned corporations securing access to the international banking system under US sanctions.
Following the military coup in 2021, the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States imposed sanctions on the MEC, while leading economies such as Australia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea did not act against the conglomerate.
According to Justice for Myanmar, the international banks’ business with Inwa Bank “shows that governments are not taking a concerted approach to isolate military associations and cut off the junta’s sources of income.”
The activist group said, “Banks must immediately suspend their transactions with Myanmar’s military banks or be complicit in the junta’s international crimes.”
Myanmar’s military regime has killed more than 2,400 civilians since ousting democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021, activists say.
