Russian Court Freezes $372 Million in U.S. Banks over Ukrainian License Dispute

The Moscow Region Arbitration Court froze funds totaling $372 million belonging to the U.S. banks, Bank of New York Mellon and JP Morgan Chase, held in Russian accounts. This move follows a lawsuit by Russian prosecutors challenging the Ukrainian central bank's withdrawal of MR bank's license.

A Moscow Region Arbitration Court has taken a decisive step by freezing assets worth $372 million from the U.S. Bank of New York Mellon and JP Morgan Chase. These funds, held by their Russian branches, have been secured following claims by Russia's deputy prosecutor. The prosecutor argued that this action is necessary to protect the interests of the Russian Federation after Ukraine's central bank pulled the plug on the MR bank's operations, with a plan to close it by 2025.

Charges against the Ukrainian regulators and the U.S. banks, including the Bank of New York Mellon and JP Morgan Chase, have been marked as 'expropriation' of property belonging to MR bank, a Ukrainian affiliate of Russia's Sberbank. The prosecutor's office contends that $121 million in JP Morgan Chase accounts and $251 million in Bank of New York Mellon accounts rightfully belong to Sberbank, reflecting a total claim of $372 million in damages.

Reports from the court show that this legal maneuver has effectively stripped Sberbank of judicial control over its Ukrainian subsidiary, blocking its ability to manage income from MR bank's international activities. As the case unfolds, both Sberbank and JP Morgan have refrained from commenting.

(With inputs from agencies.)