Germany may confiscate more than EUR 720 million of Russian assets for the first time
Kyiv • UNN
The German Federal Prosecutor's Office is seeking to seize more than 720 million euros of Russian assets held by J.P. Morgan that were frozen due to sanctions. This step may direct the funds to the German state treasury.
German Prosecutor General Peter Frank wants to confiscate more than 720 million euros of Russian assets. This was reported by UNN with reference to the German edition of Spiegel.
Details
It is noted that the German Federal Prosecutor's Office has already filed an application with the Higher Land Court of Frankfurt am Main.
The agency plans to return to the state treasury more than 720 million euros of frozen funds that were placed by a subsidiary of the Moscow Stock Exchange in the German branch of a large American bank, J.P. Morgan.
The publication emphasizes that until now Germany has only frozen the assets of Russian companies on the EU sanctions list, but because one of the companies wanted its money to disappear, the Federal Prosecutor's Office began to act. Now the money can go to the state treasury.
Addendum
In, Spiegel explained that at the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, most of the assets of wealthy Russians "leaked" out of the EU before the first sanctions were imposed.
A "task force" headed by former intelligence coordinator at the Federal Chancellery Johannes Geissmann was created to address the difficulties. At the same time, "schemes" with intricate company structures still remain a problem, as this makes it difficult to prove actual ownership.
Last year, Germany estimated the total amount of frozen assets at just under five billion euros.
Recall
The German Bundestag has passed a supplementary budget for 2023that allows borrowing outside the constitutional "debt brake" due to the emergency situation related to the war in Ukraine.
