“Moratorium“imposed
In the process, the Austrian regulator FMA imposed a “moratorium” on the European subsidiary, meaning that it cannot proceed to “no withdrawals, transfers or other transactions“until at least March 2. Under European regulations, retail deposits are guaranteed up to 100,000 euros.
The two largest Russian banks, Sberbank and VTB Bank, have been targeted in particular since Thursday by heavy American sanctions, aimed at largely limiting their international transactions.
Sberbank also has subsidiaries in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Serbia, which would be affected by a bankruptcy, but which do not come under the jurisdiction of the ECB. The European supervisor specifies that he “coordinated with national authorities” in these countries.