The US Treasury has extended permission for operations with the Moscow Exchange, NCC and NSD until October 12
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury has extended permission for transactions with the sanctioned Moscow Exchange, the National Clearing Center (NCC), and the National Settlement Depository (NSD) until October 12, 2024.
Two licences were extended: one to curtail operations “related to debt or equity, or derivative contracts,” and one to permit operations “related to debt or equity, or currency conversion.”
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It is noted that the US Treasury Department initially named August 13 as the deadline for winding down operations.
Restrictions on the Moscow Exchange and the National Clearing Center were introduced on June 12. In response to the sanctions, the Moscow Exchange announced the cessation of trading in dollars and euros from June 13.
Lawyers Name Possible Reason for US License Extension
According to lawyers, one of the possible reasons for extending the permit for operations with the Moscow Exchange, the National Clearing Center and the National Settlement Depository was that a number of non-residents did not have time complete operations with the Russian side.
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According to Gleb Boyko, a lawyer in the sanctions and compliance practice at NSP Law Firm, this led to the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control being faced with numerous requests from investors who began trying to obtain individual licenses without expecting to have time to use the general one.
The extension was probably also facilitated by the domestic situation: American counterparties of the individuals blocked on June 12 could not help but understand that the deadlines for ending the relationship were too short, and could have sent notifications about this to OFAC, trying to ease their situation.
Earlier, the Bank of Russia reported that a halt in trading in the Chinese yuan on the Moscow Exchange after the expiration of the American license, the term of which has now been extended, is not expected. At the same time, the head of the Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina, answering a question about the possibility of stopping trading, noted that all risks are taken into account.
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