The UAE’s banking regulator has asked banks and financial institutions to stop all business and dealings with the individuals and entities added in the list of having links to Qatar.

The Central Bank in a circular, published by the official news agency WAM, asked financial institutions to “start immediate search for and freezing of all bank accounts, investments, and deposits that may be held by any individual or entity” included in the new list.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt on 25 July issued a fresh list, blacklisting nine Yemen and Libya-based entities and nine people from several Arab countries. The quartet that has severed all diplomatic and transport links with Doha accusing it of financing terrorism, said that the 18 names included in the list have direct or indirect links to Qatar.

Doha denies allegations and said it is doing all it can to combat terrorism and new blacklist was “disappointing”.

The move to include more names was part of the Saudi-led bloc’s efforts to fight terrorism by continually updating their lists of groups and individuals designated as terrorist, according to WAM.

The UAE Central Bank, last month, ordered banks to stop dealing with 59 individuals and 12 entities with alleged links to Qatar and to freeze their assets. The lender were also asked to exercise caution and apply enhanced due diligence for any accounts they hold with six Qatari banks.

The UAE is the only financial regulator among the four-nation group to order action on the names included in the second list. It’s a move that central banks of the other three nations are likely to mimic.