Citigroup and Standard Chartered have begun evacuating their Dubai offices, telling staff to work from home instead, as banks step up precautions after Iran threatened Gulf banking interests linked to the U.S. and Israel.
US financial giant Citigroup told its staff to evacuate offices in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Dubai's Oud Metha neighbourhood, a memo sent to employees which was seen by Reuters shows, telling them to work from home until further notice.
Separately, HSBC has closed all branches in Qatar until further notice, according to a customer notice, saying the measure was to ensure the safety of staff and customers.
The moves came after a spokesperson for Tehran's Khatam al-Anbiya military command headquarters said Iran will target economic and banking interests linked to the US and Israel in the region, after an attack on an Iranian bank.
