Swiss Government has Frozen Nearly $9 Billion Worth of Russian Assets in the Past Year

Throughout 2023, Switzerland froze Russian assets amounting to approximately $8.8 billion. These restrictions were implemented as part of sanctions imposed on Russia to limit its ability to conduct a bloody war in Ukraine.

This information comes from Reuters, citing the Swiss government.

It's worth noting that this year's figure of frozen Russian assets has slightly increased compared to the previous year when Switzerland froze $7.9 billion.

This growth is associated with the expansion of the sanctions list, which in 2023 added 300 individuals and 100 companies. Additionally, a significant percentage of the amount includes income from deposits, bonds, stocks, and property.

Furthermore, Switzerland has also blocked the movement in foreign currency of Russian assets belonging to the Russian central bank, amounting to 7.4 billion Swiss francs.

At the same time, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland, which directly oversees compliance with the sanction regime, noted that the $8.8 billion figure is not final and may be subject to change.

It is expected that a more accurate amount will be disclosed by the end of the second quarter of 2024 when Swiss financial institutions provide final reports to their government.

It's important to add that the current amount of frozen Russian assets is only a portion of Russian money held in Switzerland. According to the Swiss Bankers Association, the country's financial institutions hold at least 150 billion Swiss francs of Russian origin.

Recall that last month, Switzerland's President, Alain Berset, visited Kyiv for a working visit during which he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. During the meeting, the parties discussed tools to use frozen Russian profits for the benefit of Ukraine.

Earlier, Belgium allocated 1.7 billion euros to Ukraine from taxes paid on interest received from frozen assets and created a special fund to receive aid from blocked Russian funds.

Overall, during the period of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, European Union countries and the G7 have frozen approximately 300 billion euros in assets belonging to the Russian central bank.