Funds About 80,000 Finns are stuck in Russia funds, with more than EUR 620 million in capital on Friday – “We have not recommended Russia before the crisis,” says Nordea

Moscow the stock market has been stuck all week following the collapse of last week. The flight of foreign capital from Russia has been considerable, and numerous companies have announced that they will cease operations in the country.

As the market is closed, foreign investors have not been able to withdraw their funds from the collapsed market either.

Finnish management companies also still have investments in Russia. For example, Nordea has investments in the Russia Fund and the Eastern Europe Fund. Both funds are now closed, the Russia fund from Monday and the Eastern Europe fund from Tuesday.

At the end of February, the value of Nordea’s Russia fund was EUR 128 million and the value of the Eastern Europe fund was EUR 81 million. Now their values ​​have fallen sharply.

Both funds have approximately 15,000 clients. Their assets are now stuck. The funds cannot be purchased and will not be withdrawn at this time.

“We want to get out of the Russian market completely, but at the moment the market is closed and the rules of the funds prevent the movement of funds. If trading is not possible, the fund will have to close, ”says the CEO of Nordea Management Company. Tanja Eronen.

The funds will open as soon as the Russian market opens up to foreign investors. Investors holding fund units can then sell their units.

Usually it is said that a stock market crash is the right time to buy shares. However, the situation in Russia appears to be such that Nordea is not in a position to recommend the acquisition of shares in the country’s market.

“It seems that Russia will be isolated from the Western market for a long time,” says Eronen. “In investor advice, we have not recommended Russia before this crisis.”

Nordea has long reduced its holdings in Russia in its emerging market fund. The fund company did not own any Russian state holdings before the crisis. There is also no Russia in Nordea’s World Fund.

“We see that many big indices are removing Russia from their own indices. Russia is currently being removed from the indices of developing countries. That suggests Russia will be isolated. ”

In Finland According to the Fund Report of the Finnish Investment Survey, there were at least seven funds investing in Russia.

They had a total of almost more than 57,000 investors. It is possible that different funds have the same investors. At the end of January, the funds had a total capital of EUR 460.8 million.

S Bank had time to sell all its investments in Russia just before the attack on February 24, says Mika Leskinen, S-bank’s investment director. Russia participated in S-bank’s Emerging Markets Loan Fund and the Emerging Markets Fund on the equity side.

“We made the last sales a few days before the 24th. We were careful all the time, and when it seemed that the worst was going to happen, although it wasn’t necessarily believed, we decided to liquidate the investments there, ”says Leskinen.

There were two illiquid shares left on the stock side that just didn’t trade. Their weight is closer to zero than half a percent, Leskinen says.

Leskinen also mentions that Russia is now leaving the world’s major indices. The bank has no plans to return to the Russian market.

“There are no warm thoughts for that market. Russia is by no means a viable country in the near future. ”