Russia Freezes Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, UniCredit Assets

Date: 18 May 2024 - 22:32

News ID: ۱۲۷۴۶۴

LONPDN (Bloomberg) - A Russian court has frozen the local assets of Germany’s Deutsche Bank AG and Commerzbank AG, and Italy’s UniCredit SpA under lawsuits totaling over €1 billion ($1.09 billion) filed by a Gazprom PJSC venture.
The Arbitration Court of the St. Petersburg and Leningrad region arrested assets of Munich-registered UniCredit Bank AG and Moscow-based UniCredit Bank AO as part of the suit from RusKhimAlians, according to court documents dated May 16. Stakes in two other Russia-based related companies were frozen, along with real estate and cash in bank accounts.
The court also froze securities owned by Deutsche Bank in Russia as well as real estate and funds at all bank accounts, according to the documents. The same decision was made against Commerzbank’s Russian assets.
The amount of frozen assets is €462.7 million for UniCredit, €238.6 million for Deutsche Bank and €93.7 million for Commerzbank, according to the filings.
“UniCredit has been made aware of the filing with Russian Court in relation to the RusKhimAlyans V UC GmbH court case to which AO UC Bank has been joined,” the bank said in an emailed statement on Friday. “Only assets commensurate with the case would be in scope of the interim measure and not to UC AO Bank as a whole. The rest of the details we are currently reviewing in detail.”
Deutsche Bank will “assess the immediate operational impact in Russia” and sees itself “fully protected” by an indemnification from a client, the German bank’s press office told Bloomberg News by email on Saturday. The bank disclosed in its annual report that it has “recognized a provision of about 260 million euros and a corresponding reimbursement asset under the indemnification agreement,” it added.
The joint enterprise between Russia’s state-run natural gas giant and smaller producer Rusgazdobycha launched more than $1 billion in legal claims against European banks that backed a key natural gas project caught up in sanctions against Russia.
The case is linked to the issuance of a “performance bond” by Unicredit and other banks on a contract signed between RusChemAlliance and Linde to build a gas treatment plant, according to people familiar with the matter who declined to be identified discussing a non-public matter.
Milan-based UniCredit, which operates in Russia through a subsidiary with some 3,100 employees and more than 50 branches, says it has set aside more than €800 million against defaults in Russia since 2022 and has cut back its loan portfolio by two-thirds. Chief Executive Officer Andrea Orcel said in May that the lender will continue to do what it can in the country and that it’s in compliance with sanctions, but that a final exit will be difficult to execute.