The European Central Bank (ECB) has demanded that Raiffeisen Bank withdraw from the Russian market, Reuters reports citing five sources.
At the same time, two interlocutors of the agency said that the regulator does not require immediate withdrawal, but insists on the formation of an action plan to curtail the bank’s activities in Russia. At the same time, one of them specified that such a plan could include the sale or closure of the Russian division.
However, sources say Raiffeisen Bank has no intention of presenting such a plan yet, and some interlocutors among Austrian officials considered the ECB’s actions “unreasonable interference.”
The bank itself assured that they have reduced lending in Russia, are accelerating the assessment of the business and are considering a “carefully controlled exit” among other options for action in the Russian market.
Recall that in February, the US Department of the Treasury approached the bank with a proposal to “clarify the payment business and related processes supported by Raiffeisen Bank in light of recent developments related to Russia and Ukraine.” Reuters experts noted that the sanctions division of the Ministry of Finance conducts such checks periodically and they do not mean automatic imposition of fines.
Source: Rosbalt
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