A Russian court has frozen the shares of the local division of Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), announced the latest the large Western bank operating in Russia, which for now excludes the possibility of selling its business, reported Reuters, quoted by BTA.
RBI has promised to spin off its Russian business, which handles payments for hundreds of companies there, after coming under pressure from international regulators. However, more than two years after the start of the war between Russia and Ukraine, almost nothing has changed.
The move, which is the largest such freeze of assets of Western banks in Russia, marks an escalation of the standoff between Moscow and the West, Reuters notes.
A spokesman for the bank said the Russian court's move precludes a sale of the bank. According to him, this will not affect the operations of the bank's Russian branch.
"We can still appoint the management and give instructions to the Russians, but we cannot sell the bank," they said.
The RBI will seek to overturn the court order, the statement said.