The European Union will withdraw 5bn euros from the profits that come from the frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank for lawsuits with Russia and other countries instead of handing them over to Ukraine. This was reported by the Politico newspaper with a reference to the document.
According to Politico, the Euroclear clearing and settlement system holds €37.6 trillion in investments. Of these finances, 192 billion euros are Russian state assets, which were frozen shortly after the conflict began in 2022.
“Euroclear (settlement and clearing system. – ed.) <…> has been authorised to retain the income generated from the investment of <…>(Russian assets. ed.) in 2022 and 2023. <…> Five billion euros <…> is a buffer to pay current and potential claims in Russia and elsewhere,” the report said.
A source at the depository told the newspaper that profits from the frozen Russian assets for 2022 and 2023 are separated from “ordinary” income. He said they do not distribute “these proceeds to shareholders and retain them until further notice”.
According to the document, these funds are “intended to cover expenses, risks and losses incurred by the depository” in connection with the Ukrainian conflict. It also emphasises that the financial institution can indefinitely retain 3% of the proceeds “to ensure the efficiency of its operations”.
“In addition to the €5 billion cash, Euroclear can benefit from a safety net of 10% of profits generated after 15 February 2024 as an additional guarantee. If the legal risks do not materialise by 2027, Euroclear must hand over a 10 percent safety net to the EU, but not the €5 billion in profits generated in 2022 and 2023,” an unnamed European official clarified.
Politico highlighted that as of February, Russian companies had filed 94 lawsuits against Euroclear demanding the return of frozen assets.
At the same time, the Ukrainian side expressed indignation at such a decision of the EU. Ukraine’s Justice Minister Denis Malyuska said he had never heard that €5bn was Euroclear’s buffer.
“This is too large a sum to act as a safety cushion for any possible risk,” Denis Malyuska said in a commentary for Politico.
Recall, earlier the head of the US Treasury Department, Jeannette Yellen said that it is necessary to find an urgent solution that will legalise the process of seizure of foreign assets of the Central Bank of Russia for $ 285 billion.
