Russian Court Orders Freezing of Assets Belonging to JP Morgan and Bank of New York Mellon in Russia
On October 2, a Moscow court froze approximately $372 million held by two U.S. banks operating in Russia.
The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. and JP Morgan Chase had their funds frozen by the Moscow Region Arbitration Court due to a Russian bank losing its license in Ukraine.
These funds were located in accounts at the Russian branches of Citibank and Morgan Chase Bank, as reported by Reuters.
The decision was made to protect the interests of the Russian Federation following the withdrawal of the license of MR Bank, a subsidiary of Russia’s Sberbank, by the Central Bank of Ukraine.
According to court documents, Russian prosecutors sought to reclaim $121 million from JP Morgan Chase and $251 million from the Bank of New York Mellon that had been placed in accounts by MR Bank.
The prosecutors claimed that Ukraine’s license withdrawal amounted to expropriation and infringed upon SberBank’s rights, harming Russia’s financial interests.
Related Stories
In May, Reuters reported a Moscow court authorized the seizure of approximately $13.34 million held in Russia by a European subsidiary of JPMorgan, as part of a case filed by another sanctioned Russian bank after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Furthermore, last year a Russian court froze $36 million of Goldman Sachs’ shares in Russian companies following a lawsuit by another Russian bank related to sanctions.
Additionally, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree in May permitting the seizure of American assets in compensation for damages caused by Russian assets seized in the U.S., as per TASS.
The decree allowed for the confiscation of U.S. property, assets, and securities owned by American individuals and companies on Russian territory.
The court’s decision aimed to rectify unjust loss of property rights and provide compensation, transferring those rights to the Russian parties affected.
The Epoch Times reached out to both the Bank of New York Mellon and JP Morgan Chase for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.
