A Russian court has frozen $372 million belonging to American banking giants JPMorgan Chase and BNY Mellon. This move comes after Russia accused Ukraine and the US banks of illegally taking property from a Russian bank.
What Happened?
The Moscow Region Arbitration Court froze the funds held by the US banks in their Russian branches. This decision follows the Ukrainian central bank’s decision to revoke the license of MR Bank, a subsidiary of Russia’s Sberbank.
Russia claims that Ukraine and the US banks acted unlawfully in taking MR Bank’s property. As a result, the Russian deputy prosecutor asked the court to freeze the US banks’ assets “in defense of the interests of the Russian Federation.”
The Stakes
Prosecutors are seeking full recognition of $121 million held by JPMorgan and $251 million held by BNY as belonging to Sberbank.
This court action comes after the Biden administration froze over $300 billion of Russian central bank reserves and imposed sanctions on major Russian financial institutions, including Sberbank and VTB, in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Banks’ Response
Both JPMorgan and BNY Mellon have declined to comment publicly on the matter.
