BRUSSELS, November 13. /TASS/. Chief executive officer of Belgian depository Euroclear Valerie Urbain believes the organization’s assets in Russia or in countries friendly to Moscow could be subject to confiscation should the frozen Russian assets be expropriated.
"Indeed, there are risks of confiscation, both in Russia and in other countries friendly to it (where Euroclear holds assets on behalf of clients - TASS). <...>. We have taken a number of legal measures to protect ourselves," she told Le Soir newspaper.
The EU and G7 countries have frozen around 300 bln euros in Russian assets. Approximately 180 bln euros are held in the Belgian depository Euroclear. Participants of the EU summit held late last year failed to reach an agreement on the expropriation of frozen Russian assets under the guise of a reparation loan for Ukraine. Instead, it was decided to provide 90 bln euros to Kiev for the 2026-2027 period, financed through a loan. The depository has repeatedly opposed the expropriation of Russian funds, warning that this could lead to Russia seizing European or Belgian assets located elsewhere in the world through legal proceedings.