Chinese state banks have reportedly banned North Koreans living in China from opening up new accounts and have suspended money remittance through existing North Korean accounts.

Japan’s Kyodo News reported on Saturday that the latest move is likely to target North Korean consular officials or traders in China, adding the move is not related to the United Nations Security Council resolution but China’s own independent measure.

Kyodo quoted a Chinese official as saying that China’s major state banks, including the Bank of China, the Construction Bank of China, and the Agricultural Bank of China suspended transactions with North Koreans in Yanji in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in Jilin Province in line with the global sanctions against North Korea.

Quoting a source, the report said that Chinese banks started to restrict transactions for North Koreans last year, with those in Liaoning Province following suit in April this year.

The source reportedly said that the withdrawal from the North Korean accounts is possible, but the remittance through and deposit into the accounts are impossible.