(MENAFN) On Wednesday, a US news agency reported that the three leading Israeli banks have separated assets within accounts held by Russian citizens or those residing in Russia. Mark Oigman, the founder of the international financial company SmartGen, provided this information.
Earlier, Euroclear, the largest depositary in the EU, had required its partner banks to segregate accounts of Russian individuals to ensure compliance with EU sanctions.
“We know that Israel’s three largest banks have already segregated [Russian accounts]: Discount bank, Bank Hapoalim and Bank Leumi,” Oigman stated.
The financial expert noted that the majority of asset-holders successfully safeguarded their funds as banks informed them in advance about the potential segregation of accounts.
This advance notice provided ample time for individuals to sell or transfer their securities. Oigman emphasized that the segregation specifically targeted assets associated with Euroclear. He clarified that Russian residents can still open accounts and engage in foreign securities trading through Israeli banks, as long as these securities fall outside the jurisdiction of the EU.
In response to sanctions related to the Ukraine conflict, the EU and Switzerland imposed restrictions on assets owned by Russian citizens last year. Russian individuals were prohibited from receiving more than €100,000 (USD 108,000) in their EU-based accounts.
A similar cap was applied to investment accounts, where any Russian resident's investment portfolio surpassing €100,000 resulted in coupon income, dividends, or proceeds from asset sales being credited to a specially segregated account. Access to these funds was revoked for the account owner, providing Euroclear with the means to block them in case of sanctions violations.
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