Trump-connected lobbyist drops Turkish bank after indictment
Halkbank had hired Brian Ballard’s firm in 2017.
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Calibri; color: #0d0d0d; -webkit-text-stroke: #0d0d0d} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 16.0px 'Times New Roman'; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 15.0px 'Times New Roman'; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.s2 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none; color: #0463c1; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #0463c1} span.s3 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none; color: #2865a8; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #2865a8} The main lobbying firm for Halkbank told Al-Monitor today that it was no longer representing the Turkish state-owned bank after federal prosecutors indicted it on Tuesday.
“For some months now, we have been arguing that in its consideration of this case, it was important for the US government to taken into account the fact that Turkey is a close NATO ally and the bank is especially important to the country’s financial system and economy,” said James Rubin, a partner at Ballard Partners who represented Halkbank along with former Donald Trump Florida lobbyist Brian Ballard. “Since the matter is now in the judicial channels, we felt it was the right moment to bring our representation to a close.”
Halkbank, Turkey’s second-largest state-owned bank, spent $3.3 million on lobbying over a two-year period to avoid Tuesday’s outcome. Federal prosecutors in New York filed criminal charges accusing the bank of scheming to circumvent US sanctions on Iran.
The bank hired Ballard Partners in August 2017. The bank has paid Ballard more than $2.6 million since then.
