America extends license for procedures with Moscow Exchange

(MENAFN) The United States Treasury Department has announced an extension of its license permitting transactions with the Moscow Stock Exchange (MOEX) and its two subsidiaries, the National Clearing Center (NCC) and the National Settlement Depository (NSD), until October 12, 2024. This extension follows the imposition of sanctions on these entities by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on June 12.

According to the updated statement from OFAC, the license authorizes transactions that are "ordinarily incident and necessary to the wind down" of any dealings involving the listed entities through the new deadline. This measure allows for the orderly cessation of operations with the MOEX, NCC, and NSD, despite the broader sanctions imposed by the US government on Russia’s financial sector.

In June, the US imposed a significant set of sanctions targeting Russia's financial and currency markets. Following these sanctions, the Moscow Exchange halted trading in United States dollars and euros, impacting Russia’s foreign and precious metals sectors, as well as stock and currency trading. Despite these disruptions, MOEX continued operations with other financial instruments.

The extension of the license has been seen by some as a pragmatic move by United States officials. Anatoly Aksakov, Chairman of the Russian State Duma’s Financial Markets Committee, commented that the extension might indicate a shift towards more practical considerations among American policymakers. He acknowledged that while the sanctions have posed challenges for Russia, they have not drastically disrupted financial processes within the country.

This decision reflects ongoing efforts to balance regulatory actions with practical implications for international financial transactions and highlights the complexities of sanction enforcement and compliance in a globalized financial system.

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