Sanctions on Russia provide a rare opportunity to learn about these assets.

It became known how much money the Russians keep in Switzerland / photo REUTERS

Russians keep up to 213 billion dollars in Swiss banks. It was possible to learn about these assets thanks to sanctions against Russia.

Reuters writes about it .

The Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) estimates that banks hold between 150 and 200 billion Swiss francs ($213 billion) of Russian clients in offshore accounts.

These assets demonstrate that the scope of wealthy Russians’ business with banks in Switzerland, the world’s largest center of offshore enrichment, is much broader than the balance sheet risk some of its financial firms have begun to detail.

Information about the assets of Russians in Switzerland became known thanks to sanctions against the Russian Federation.

Now in Switzerland, the debate continues to increase pressure on the Russians. Mattea Meyer, co-chair of the Social Democrats, is calling for restrictions on any funds belonging to Russians close to President Putin and his government.

“Part of it belongs to oligarchs loyal to the Kremlin. The money and their activities … help finance the war,” she said.

Despite its assessment, the SBA stressed that this is not much with total assets held in Switzerland, which generations of wealthy people around the world have viewed as a safe haven for their money.

“The share of assets held by Russian clients is likely to be in the low percentage range of total cross-border assets deposited with Swiss banks,” the statement said.

(C)UNIAN 2022