The European Union should impose sanctions on Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) if it continues to operate in Russia. This was announced to journalists by Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki after the EU Council meeting.
“I think that in the not too distant future, a specific date should be set when companies that develop business in Russia, such as Raiffeisen International Bank, will have to stop their activities in Russia. Otherwise, sanctions or other measures should be applied to them,” he said. son his words to RIA Novosti.
Morawiecki added that by working in Russia, Raiffeisen “makes money there and contributes to the Russian budget.”
On the afternoon of March 24, Reuters, citing five sources, reported that the European Central Bank (ECB) demanded that Raiffeisen Bank International end its activities in Russia.
One of the agency’s interlocutors said RBI came under pressure after James O’Brien, head of the US State Department’s sanctions coordination office, raised concerns about Raiffeisen Bank and its activities in Russia. during negotiations in Vienna in February 2023.
The ECB is not asking the Austrian bank to leave Russia immediately, two sources told Reuters, but it is waiting for an action plan to end its activities in the country. One of the interlocutors noted that such a plan could include the sale or closure of the Russian branch. However, according to the agency, Raiffeisen is not yet going to provide such a plan.
An RBI spokesman told the agency the bank was reviewing prospects for its business in Russia, including a “carefully managed exit.” He also noted that Raiffeisen Bank has reduced its lending in the country.
“RBI is exploring all strategic options for the future of Raiffeisenbank Russia, up to and including an elaborate exit from the bank. Due to the complexity of the situation, including the restrictive measures imposed by the Russian Federation, this process continues, reported RIA Novosti in the press service of a financial organization after the publication of the Reuters publication.
Possible
In mid-March, the Austrian newspaper Der Standard writing that the withdrawal of Raiffeisen Bank International from the Russian business can take place according to the barter system, while the asset can be received by Sberbank, which is subject to sanctions.
According to the publication, RBI is working on a project to exchange assets in an environment of heightened secrecy. Presumably, Belarus’ largest commercial bank Priorbank, which also owns Russia’s RBI and Raiffeisen dividends for 2022 – around 2 billion euros, could complete the deal.
However, the Austrian financial institution called such a scheme purely theoretical. According to representatives of the bank, this is only one of the options considered to reduce activities in Russia.
According to Der Standard, disclosing the scheme makes it nearly impossible, especially since regulators have shown no interest in implementing it.
Pressure on RBI
In January 2023, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) launched an audit of Raiffeisen Bank International due to its ties to Russia. We talk about the activities of the bank in the Donbass, Ukraine and Syria, as well as the transactions and activity of some customers.
According to Reuters sources, the check was for possible breaches of Western sanctions. Raiffeisen said the investigation was general in nature.
At the beginning of March, the Russian branch of the Austrian financial institution Raiffeisenbank temporarily stopped opening accounts for new legal entities, as well as additional foreign currency accounts for existing corporate clients.
The bank explained this by a high load due to the influx of applications for opening accounts, the increase in checks and the additional requirements of correspondent banks.
On March 23, the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption of Ukraine added the Austrian banking group Raiffeisen Bank International to the list of “war sponsors”. The agency cited the Raiffeisen Bank’s continued operations in Russia as the reason for this, including the Russian division’s recognition of the DPR and LPR, loans to the military and “playing with propaganda”.
