The Royal Bank of Canada, Canada's largest chartered bank, is closing the U.S.-dollar chequing accounts of hundreds of Canadians with dual-citizenship, the bank confirmed Wednesday.

"A couple of hundred" people have been affected by the decision, which was necessary in order to comply with new U.S. anti- terrorism rules guarding against money laundering, the bank said in a statement.

The Canadian citizens affected by the move have dual nationalities with Iran, Iraq, Cuba, Sudan, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Myanmar, RBC spokesman David Moorcroft told the national newspaper "The Globe and Mail" earlier this week.

Moorcroft said the financial institution is simply attempting to comply with the new regulations by the U.S. Treasury Department, which governs institutions that deal with U.S. currency.

He said some European banks have been fined millions of dollars for failing to comply with the new regulations, and it is within the rights of the United States to set the policies.

Banks that fail to comply with the regulations could be banned from offering any U.S. dollar accounts, he said.

The move has triggered charges of racial profiling against Canadians who keep the accounts in order to send funds to family members in their home countries in U.S. dollars. RBC has more than 600,000 U.S.-dollar accounts in Canada.

U.S. authorities have brought in a host of new regulations to combat terrorism financing and money laundering since Sept. 11, 2001. The Treasury Department has also introduced economic sanctions that block certain people from holding U.S.-dollar accounts.

Ottawa says it plays no role in policing U.S.-currency accounts at Canadian banks, but the banks offering them are required to comply with U.S. law.