On Monday the 14th we send the corresponding currency payment. The payment went to the respective US bank, which is our bank holding the foreign currency account, including the Ministry of Finance.”
Anton Siluanov, Russian Finance Minister.
Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov assured that Russia has already paid its debt of 117.2 million dollars, however, the settlement was made in rubles, so it will depend on the United States if it withdraws the funds in dollars.
Siluanov emphasized that “the possibility or impossibility” of Russia to meet its obligations in foreign currency does not depend on them, “we have the money and we have made the payment, now the ball is in the court of the United States,” he said in an interview with the Saudi media Russia Today.
“On Monday the 14th we sent the corresponding foreign currency payment. The payment went to the respective US bank, which is our bank holding the foreign currency account,” Siluanov said.
He explained that he still does not have information regarding whether the payment was accepted or not and that he only knows that his bank is negotiating with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which has requested the information. necessary on the purpose of the payment. “So we will wait for information from our incumbent bank,” he mentioned.
However, he regretted that there is a risk that the payment will not reach the final recipients, “Why? Because our dollar account is blocked,” she noted.
According to the Russian minister, in case the banks do not want to transfer the money in foreign currency, Russia will transfer the required amount in rubles at the prevailing exchange rate.
Due to sanctions imposed by Western countries, about half of Russia’s reserves, some 300 billion dollars, are frozen.
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Subsequently, Bloomberg revealed, through an interview with a member of the United States Treasury Department, that the restrictions on transactions with the Russian central bank do not prevent Russia from making payments on its debt in dollars, at least until the end of the year. of May.
“U.S. persons are authorized to receive payments of interest, dividends, or debt or principal maturities from the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the National Wealth Fund of the Russian Federation, and the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation until 12:01 p.m. May 25, 2022,” the anonymous source mentioned.
On Tuesday, the rating agency Fitch warned that if Russia paid its debt bonds in rubles it would represent a “sovereign default”.
“According to Fitch Ratings’ sovereign rating criteria, payment in local currency of Russia’s eurobond coupons due on March 16 would constitute a sovereign default if the 30-day grace period expires” , he pointed.