Bank of Khartoum (BOK), is the largest bank in Sudan. With some 111 or more branches, it is also the commercial bank with the oldest continuous history in the country. The largest single shareholder is Dubai Islamic Bank. In 2011, the government of the United States of America lifted its sanctions on Bank of Khartoum. The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control posted a notice on its website that it had removed Bank of Khartoum from the blacklist, meaning Bank of Khartoum could seek the return of blocked assets and resume limited dealings with U.S. financial institutions. However, in March 2014, several European and Saudi Arabian banks announced that they would cease transacting with Bank of Sudan.
With the separation of South Sudan from Sudan, the Bank of Khartoum Juba (BOK-JUBA) is now operating as a commercial bank in South Sudan. In 2012, the Government of South Sudan forced the sale of the shares and the BOK-JUBA bank became Charter One Bank (South Sudan)
History
The origins of the Bank of Khartoum date back to 1913 when the Anglo-Egyptian Bank established a branch in Khartoum. In 1925, Barclays Bank merged Anglo-Egyptian with two other banks to form Barclays Bank (Dominion, Colonial and Overseas).
After World War II, Ottoman Bank in 1948 established a branch in Khartoum. Five years later, Egypt's Bank Misr