On April 30, it became officially known that the US Treasury Department allowed transactions with Russian banks, including VTB, Central Bank, Sberbank, and Alfa Bank, for settlements in the energy sector. It will last until November 1, 2024.
The US temporarily approved settlements with Russian banks
Journalists draw attention to the fact that the list of banks that received a temporary license also includes banks "Otkritie", Sovkombank, Rosbank, VEB.RF, bank "Zenith" and bank "St. Petersburg".
According to a statement from the US Treasury Department, transactions related to the extraction, production, processing, liquefaction, transportation or purchase of oil and several other energy resources, including LNG, wood, coal and uranium, will be considered energy-related.
In addition, the license unblocks transactions with Russian banks related to the production, supply, or exchange of energy.
The US authorities have not yet explained their decision.
Russian banks found a way to circumvent ban on dollars and euros import
As Bloomberg discovered, some Russian banks are probably trading gold in the United Arab Emirates and Turkey to circumvent the ban on importing dollars and euros into the country.
Journalists noted that Russian creditors continued to supply gold in exchange for banknotes until at least July or August 2023.
Moreover, gold supplies appear to have expanded to Hong Kong, the UAE, and Turkey.
It is essential to understand that sanctions on the export of banknotes were introduced after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation.
The tactic became widespread after the European Union and the United States imposed restrictions to limit Russia's access to Western currencies as part of sanctions imposed in response to its war against Ukraine.
