Banks in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have restricted their business with Russia and begun closing both personal and business accounts due to the risk of secondary sanctions.
A source close to the Council of Ministers of Russia stated that the Russian government is aware of the issue, although it considers it noncritical and solvable.
“At this moment, UAE banks do not accept money from Russia and do not allow payments in the opposite direction towards Russia,” a Russian newspaper reported.
The source added that UAE banks continue to close accounts of companies owned by Russian citizens, “and they are not always transparent about the reasons for closure.”
It is noted that UAE banks began tightening their policy towards clients with Russian citizenship in the fall of 2023. At that time, credit institutions stopped accepting payments from Russia.
A bank in Hong Kong had to be added to the payment chain, but as of February 2024, it stopped participating in the scheme, and payments are now made in cryptocurrency.
The situation with banking services has become more complicated for companies with Russian clients who neither transfer money to Russia nor receive money from Russia.
A Russian newspaper claimed that UAE banks introduced restrictions for Russian clients before the United States (U.S.) announced secondary sanctions in December 2023. Sources suggested that this could be due to a significant share of foreign shareholders in major credit institutions.
Sources indicate that it is still possible for individuals or legal entities from Russia to open an account in UAE banks, but the procedure takes longer for those not connected to local elites, Klix.ba writes.
