One of the largest banks in the United States announced the threat of asset confiscation in Russia
Kyiv • UNN
JPMorgan Chase is facing potential confiscation of its assets in Russia due to lawsuits filed by Russian banks seeking to recover funds blocked by US sanctions.
JPMorgan Chase, the largest lender in the United States, said on Wednesday that its assets in Russia could be confiscated following lawsuits in Russian and American courts, UNN reports citing Reuters.
Details
The bank has faced a number of legal challenges in relation to its transactions with Russia after the US and European countries imposed economic sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
The amount of claims and asset freezing orders exceeds JPMorgan's existing assets in Russia, the largest US lender said. JPMorgan Chase did not specify the size of its assets in Russia.
Last month, a Russian court ordered the seizure of funds in JPMorgan's accounts after Russian state-owned VTB Bank filed a lawsuit to recover its funds blocked abroad.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan has filed a lawsuit against Russian bank VTB, as the American lender tried to block VTB's attempt to repay $439.5 million.
JPMorgan's Russian assets are worth less than VTB's claims alone, the source said. These assets can range from cash to real estate and office equipment. JPMorgan declined to comment beyond that.
JPMorgan accused the Russian courts of ignoring the bank's contractual rights and obligations, as well as its inability to make various payments due to the sanctions legislation.
Meanwhile, on the morning of May 2, the Russian media reported that the Arbitration Court of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region in Russia had lifted the freeze on the C-type accounts of JPMorgan's subsidiary bank, which had been blocked by VTB's lawsuit.
Addendum
JPMorgan said that US law prohibits it from providing funds to sanctioned companies, including VTB, which was added to the US Treasury Department's sanctions list in February 2022.
