Easing of U.S. Investment and Financial Services Sanctions on Burma

On May 17, 2012, the U.S. State Department announced the U.S. government's intention to suspend the broad-based prohibition on U.S. persons providing financial services or making new investments in Burma. The suspension of the U.S. prohibitions on new investment and providing financial services are the latest in a series of changes to the U.S. sanctions on Burma (Myanmar). It is important to note that while the State Department has announced these policy changes, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (OFAC), which administers the Burmese Sanctions Regulations (BSR), 31 C.F.R. Part 537, has not yet released proposed regulatory changes to implement this policy. Any new investment and financial services in Burma will need to take into account OFAC's changes to the BSR, which are expected soon.