Germany examining Iranian request to move $353 mil cash home

Germany's Finance Ministry says authorities are examining a request from Iran to repatriate hundreds of millions of euros in cash held in a Hamburg-based bank.

Bild newspaper reported Monday that the Iranian regime wants to bring home 300 million euros ($353 million) it has in the European-Iranian Trade Bank to have on hand when American financial sector sanctions come into effect.

Finance Ministry Jeanette Schwamberger confirmed the request had been made, and says it's now being checked by financial regulators as are all large transactions involving countries where there might be possible "money laundering or terror financing."

She says "should the checks turn up anything suspicious then the result would be the transaction cannot be completed."

She says she has no overall figure for Iranian holdings in Germany.