UniCredit Nears $900 Million Deal With U.S. Over Iran Sanctions

UniCredit SpA is nearing an agreement with U.S. authorities over allegations that the bank provided dollar-clearing services to Iranian clients in violation of U.S. sanctions, people with the knowledge of the matter said. The deal would cost the Italian lender about $900 million but spare it from criminal prosecution, the people said.

A settlement of that size would be one of the largest for violations of U.S. sanctions laws, exceeded only by agreements reached with Societe Generale SA, Commerzbank AG, HSBC Holdings Plc and BNP Paribas SA. Among them, only BNP Paribas admitted guilt. The others entered into deferred-prosecution agreements.