German prosecutor seeks to confiscate $800 million in Russian assets
German officials have announced plans to seize almost $800 million in assets from a Russian bank's account in Frankfurt due to alleged violations of EU sanctions.
The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe has initiated “independent confiscation proceedings,” according to its official website.
“As part of this procedure, the account balance of a Russian financial institution at a Bank in Frankfurt am Main amounting to more than €720 million ($788 million) will be confiscated,” the statement added.
Authorities are reportedly targeting the assets of a Moscow Stock Exchange subsidiary at the German branch of JPMorgan, Der Spiegel said on Wednesday.
The Prosecutor General’s Office has said the Russian institution in question was included on the EU’s sanctions list in June 2022, resulting in a ban on the disposal of its assets in the bloc’s financial and credit institutions.
“Shortly after the listing, unknown officials at the Russian financial institution attempted to withdraw more than €720 million from its account at a bank in Frankfurt am Main. The bank did not execute the electronic transfer order,” the prosecutor’s statement said.
The Prosecutor General’s Office has sent a corresponding request for an investigation to a court in Frankfurt. If successful, the money will reportedly be transferred to the state treasury to replenish Germany’s ailing budget.
Germany has blocked about €5.3 billion of Russian assets in its financial institutions, according to the country’s data.
An estimated $300 billion of Russian central bank assets have been frozen worldwide since Moscow launched its military operation in Ukraine. Of that amount, $100 billion is reportedly being held in the US, while $200 billion is frozen in the EU. The funds have reportedly generated nearly $4 billion in profits.
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