Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) is trying to delay its exit from Russia, Reuters writes , citing its sources.
Earlier it was reported that this bank, which is still operating in the Russian Federation, planned to exit the Russian market before September 2023. European regulators insist on this. However, both the Austrian authorities and the RBI leadership are resisting this pressure in the hope that the war will end soon.
Reuters sources say that the Austrian authorities are trying to convince both the EU and Washington that such actions are unfair to the bank. Some Austrian officials with whom the agency managed to talk, despite the support of Ukraine, do not want to completely cut off ties with Russia and believe that relations between the Russian Federation and Austria can still be restored.
In turn, RBI has not yet presented either the European Central Bank or the Russian authorities with a plan to exit the Russian market. This is necessary to give shareholders the go-ahead to sell assets. But even if the plan is presented, it could take months to get approved.
On May 5, it became known that Raiffeisen Bank International closed all correspondent accounts of Russian banks, except for the account of its subsidiary Russian bank Raiffeisen.
