Dubai on alert: Iran adds US and Israeli banks to target list

Iran's joint military command said Wednesday that banks and financial institutions linked to the United States and Israel had been added to its list of targets. The statement followed an overnight strike in Tehran on an administrative building linked to Bank Sepah, one of Iran's largest state-owned banks.

Spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari said the strike gave Iran grounds to target economic centers and banks across the region. “Americans should wait for our painful response,” he said, and warned civilians to stay at least one kilometer away from financial institutions linked to the US and Israel.

Gulf financial centers on alert

The threat has raised immediate concerns for the region's main financial centers. Dubai, Bahrain, and parts of Saudi Arabia host hundreds of international banks and serve as key banking hubs for the wider Middle East. The UN Security Council was due to vote Wednesday on a resolution demanding Iran halt attacks on its Arab neighbors.

Cyber risk grows

The threat is not limited to physical strikes. Iranian state-backed groups have a documented history of targeting Western financial infrastructure. Past campaigns hit 46 major institutions, including Bank of America, the New York Stock Exchange, and Capital One, with DDoS attacks reaching 140 gigabits per second and causing tens of millions of dollars in damages.

Cybersecurity firms have raised their threat assessments since the February 28 strikes. Possible tactics include DDoS attacks, wiper malware, and deepfake-based fraud. A coordinated cyberattack on banking systems could cause disruption far beyond the impact of a missile strike on a single building.

New phase of escalation

The conflict has widened in stages: first military targets, then leadership, then oil infrastructure, and then water systems. Iran has effectively disrupted cargo traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of global oil supply passes, and has struck oil fields and refineries across Gulf states. Financial institutions are now the latest targets.

The FBI has raised its alert level nationwide. DHS has issued warnings about potential cyberattacks on American financial infrastructure. Unlike a missile strike, a successful attack on banking systems may leave no visible damage, but it can trigger cascading failures across multiple institutions.