25.12.2023, 10:25
Nabiullina: disconnecting from SWIFT and freezing assets are the most painful sanctions
Source: OREANDA-NEWS
OREANDA-NEWS The Chairman of the Central Bank (CB) Elvira Nabiullina, commenting on the sanctions imposed against the Russian Federation, called the freezing of assets of private Russian investors a very painful topic. She also considers sanctions affecting international payments to be a problem.
As the head of the Central Bank told RBC in an interview, the regulator has been assessing the risks of tougher sanctions since 2014. According to her, the large banks that fell under the restrictions "were largely ready" for them. "Disconnection from SWIFT has been a threat since 2014, so we were building a national payment infrastructure. We have diversified our reserves and increased the share of yuan and gold," says Ms. Nabiullina.
According to her, the freezing of the Central Bank's reserves was "a very negative signal for all central banks, because it violates the basic principles of reserve security." Elvira Nabiullina assured that the regulator was helped by the "floating exchange rate and currency restrictions that we have adopted quite tough" in the spring of 2022.
"The problem, that's exactly the problem, has become international payments, they are still a problem, although we are trying to solve it. Of course, the blocking and freezing of assets of individuals — millions of people who did not fall under sanctions, but ended up with frozen assets — became a very painful topic," the head of the Central Bank noted.
She did not rule out the tightening of anti-Russian sanctions and stressed that we must be ready for this. "We were able to answer the main challenges, if we talk about the financial sector, but there are problems in the financial sector that have not been fully resolved, including cross-border payments. Yes, chains are being built, they are constantly changing, but this remains a problem for many enterprises," Ms. Nabiullina added.
Due to the sanctions, about $300 billion of Russian reserves were frozen. According to analysts, the West managed to find only $80-100 billion of them. The European Union is discussing the confiscation of frozen Russian assets and their transfer to Ukraine. The Financial Times wrote that the EU plans to collect up to €15 billion ($16.4 billion) from revenues from the assets of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation for Kiev. According to the publication, the United States offers to transfer frozen assets of the Russian Federation to Ukraine in tranches.
As the head of the Central Bank told RBC in an interview, the regulator has been assessing the risks of tougher sanctions since 2014. According to her, the large banks that fell under the restrictions "were largely ready" for them. "Disconnection from SWIFT has been a threat since 2014, so we were building a national payment infrastructure. We have diversified our reserves and increased the share of yuan and gold," says Ms. Nabiullina.
According to her, the freezing of the Central Bank's reserves was "a very negative signal for all central banks, because it violates the basic principles of reserve security." Elvira Nabiullina assured that the regulator was helped by the "floating exchange rate and currency restrictions that we have adopted quite tough" in the spring of 2022.
"The problem, that's exactly the problem, has become international payments, they are still a problem, although we are trying to solve it. Of course, the blocking and freezing of assets of individuals — millions of people who did not fall under sanctions, but ended up with frozen assets — became a very painful topic," the head of the Central Bank noted.
She did not rule out the tightening of anti-Russian sanctions and stressed that we must be ready for this. "We were able to answer the main challenges, if we talk about the financial sector, but there are problems in the financial sector that have not been fully resolved, including cross-border payments. Yes, chains are being built, they are constantly changing, but this remains a problem for many enterprises," Ms. Nabiullina added.
Due to the sanctions, about $300 billion of Russian reserves were frozen. According to analysts, the West managed to find only $80-100 billion of them. The European Union is discussing the confiscation of frozen Russian assets and their transfer to Ukraine. The Financial Times wrote that the EU plans to collect up to €15 billion ($16.4 billion) from revenues from the assets of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation for Kiev. According to the publication, the United States offers to transfer frozen assets of the Russian Federation to Ukraine in tranches.
Комментарии