Russia curbs bank moves for Italian customers of Intesa and UniCredit units

A Russian state flag flies over the headquarters of the Central Bank in Moscow, Russia, March 29, 2021. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

MILAN, May 27 (Reuters) – Russia has imposed temporary restrictions on the current accounts of Italian individuals and companies doing business with local units of Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) and UniCredit (CRDI.MI), two people close to the file. said.

Confirming the news reports, the people said the Bank of Russia had told local branches of the two major Italian lenders that from May 25, Italian residents and businesses, as well as Italian consulates, could no longer withdraw money from their accounts without the approval of local authorities. bank managers.

Deposits that cause an account balance to rise above 100,000 euros ($107,150) are also prohibited, to an extent matching that imposed by the European Union on Russian nationals, the sources said.

Also, Italian companies and citizens who do not have Russian residence permits would not be allowed to open new accounts, they added.

The Italian Embassy and its Consulates General in Russia do business with Intesa, Italy’s largest lender.

The Italian Consulate General in Moscow said on its website that it regrets the difficulties encountered by Russian citizens due to the problems encountered by Banca Intesa in carrying out transactions concerning consular functions.

The Italian Embassy separately mentioned on Instagram the restrictions introduced by the Bank of Russia which hampered the payment of consular fees.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Intesa said it is conducting a strategic review of its presence in Russia, where it serves corporate customers with a workforce of approximately 980 people.

UniCredit runs Russia’s 14th largest bank and is working on an exit. It has so far failed to strike a deal, with people familiar with the process saying the exit is complicated by the bank’s determination not to destroy the value of a sale.

CEO Andrea Orcel said the escalating international sanctions left only a “very small window” to pull out, adding that this could only happen if the bank found a solution to not leave its 4,000 Russian employees and 1,250 European corporate clients in trouble. ($1 = 0.9333 euros)

Reporting by Valentina Za; edited by Agnieszka Flak and Keith Weir

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