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Goldman Sachs and Citigroup have told their Paris staff they can temporarily work from home after a thwarted bombing at Bank of America’s office in the French capital last week that prosecutors say may be linked to a pro-Iranian group.
US authorities had recently warned the banks of potential security threats, two people familiar with the matter said.
Police and security services in France have been on alert since a video was posted on social media in late March by what purports to be a new Iran-linked group, Ashab al-Yamin, that called for attacks on Jewish communities and businesses across Europe and in France, including the BofA office.
Police stopped two suspects from planting an improvised bomb at the office on rue de la Boétie at the weekend and have made a total of four arrests so far.
Ashab al-Yamin has already claimed responsibility online for antisemitic arson attacks last month in the UK, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Goldman told employees in Paris on Thursday they could work from home if they wished to, a person familiar with the matter said, after police and prosecutors looked into security threats against the bank, which has offices overlooking the Arc de Triomphe in central Paris.
The Paris prosecutor said on Thursday that “nothing suspicious” had been found at Goldman’s offices. Some people were still working in the building, a second person familiar with the matter said.
Citi has told staff in Paris and Frankfurt to work remotely on Thursday and Friday. “We are taking the necessary measures to keep our employees safe. Employees in Paris are working remotely, as a precautionary measure,” the bank said in a statement.
JPMorgan declined to comment. A person close to the bank said it had increased its security across all locations since the attempted Bank of America attack.
The Paris police said it had put into place “reinforced security” across the city at religious and cultural sites, embassies and businesses, including the banks.
Four men — three of whom are aged 16 or 17 — are now under official investigation by French prosecutors for the attempted BofA attack. The adult suspect who was arrested allegedly sent the minors there to set off the incendiary device and film the scene in exchange for a payment of between €500 and €1,000.
The three minors had tried to plant the explosive device last Thursday into Friday but stopped because a police car was nearby, prosecutors alleged. Two returned the following night, with one caught on the scene by police while the other initially escaped.
French officials say they believe the incident may be linked to Iran, given the statements from Ashab al-Yamin and similar attacks on Jewish organisations in London, Liège and elsewhere in recent weeks. Terrorism prosecutors and police are continuing to investigate.
Julian Lanchès, an analyst at the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism think-tank, has analysed the online presence of Ashab al-Yamin and determined that it is a “new group, established for the purpose of this bombing campaign”.
“Concerns regarding Tehran’s potential involvement in this wave of attacks, particularly in light of the observed online patterns, are not unfounded, given Iran’s longstanding history of conducting hybrid operations abroad,” he wrote. “Rather than involving official operatives, the attacks appear to rely on locally recruited individuals.”
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