CZCB notified customers about the suspension of transactions with Russia and Belarus, the pro-government Moscow daily Vedomosti announced on Wednesday.
Chinese state-owned banks have introduced restrictions on serving Russian customers
As reported, CZCB has become the main clearing center for importers “due to its relatively lenient compliance” and geographical location – its headquarters is in Yiwu, one of the main logistics hubs for Chinese exports to Russia.
Transactions have been suspended both in the case of the international SWIFT settlement system, as well as in the case of the Russian SPFS and Chinese CIPS.
This decision may be related to the executive order signed by US President Joe Biden at the end of December, Reuters reported. It enables sanctions to be imposed on financial institutions that handle transactions supporting the Russian arms industry.
As Bloomberg reported in mid-January, Chinese state-owned banks introduced restrictions on servicing Russian clients after the publication of a document on new American sanctions.
After Russia invaded Ukraine, Chinese banks began to take the place of Western banks, which came under intense pressure from regulators and politicians in their countries to leave Russia.
