17-7-2023 (YANGON) Myanmar Airways International (MAI) has expressed surprise at the decision of Singapore’s United Overseas Bank (UOB) to close its bank accounts. The announcement, made on July 15, stated that UOB would close all five MAI accounts by August 15. The airline said in a statement that the decision was unexpected, given that the bank had continuously served its accounts for the past six years without incidents.
MAI respects the bank’s prerogative to terminate the business relationship with the airline and will endeavor to comply with the provided timeline. The carrier is grateful to UOB for extending the grace period without hesitation to allow it to find alternative banking services and support.
The bank’s decision came shortly after the publication of a United Nations report on Myanmar. Despite economic sanctions and other challenges, MAI, as a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), will continue to operate its domestic and international flights.
According to The Straits Times, UOB announced that it would close all five bank accounts of MAI by August 15, despite appeals by the airline to keep them open. The airline will also have to stop using the bank to make payments to others by July 21, and no one will be able to make payments or transfer funds to the bank, except those from IATA. After the August 15 deadline, any balance in the five MAI accounts will be “remitted,” said UOB in its correspondence with the carrier.
