According to bank documents seen by Reuters, several major Wall Street banks have started bidding to facilitate Russian debt trading in recent days, giving investors a chance to divest assets deemed toxic by the West.
According to a report, most US and European banks withdrew from the Russian market in June after the Treasury Department banned US investors from buying any Russian bonds as part of economic sanctions to punish Moscow for invading Ukraine. .
Following the department’s subsequent guidelines in July allowing US owners to reduce their holdings, Wall Street’s biggest firms cautiously entered the Russian government and corporate bond market, according to conversations with the US, along with emails, client notes, and other communications from six banks. is back. resources.
Banks currently in the market include JPMorgan Chase & Co, Bank of America Corp, Citigroup Inc, Deutsche Bank AG, Barclays Plc, and Jefferies Financial Group Inc, according to the documents.
About $40 billion worth of Russian government bonds were in circulation before Russia began what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine in February. About half were held by foreign funds. Many investors are stuck with Russian assets as their value plummets, buyers disappear, and sanctions make trading more difficult.
Since then, regulators have taken steps to help ease the pain of investors.
The Treasury provided further guidance to help pay Russian bond default insurance payments on July 22. It was also announced that banks could facilitate, clarify and finalize Russian bond transactions if it would help US holders reduce their positions.
Separately, European regulators have relaxed the rules that allow investors to trade Russian assets, allowing them to be placed in “side pockets” or special-purpose compartments, as the case may be.
The price of some Russian bonds has risen with renewed trading activity since the end of July. This could make deals more attractive to investors and also help companies selling Russian default protection.
According to the documents and the investor holding the Russian bonds, some banks offer the trading of Russian government and corporate bonds, while others offer to facilitate the trading of bonds in rubles and dollars. But at the same time, they demand additional documents from customers and avoid risk.
Approaches also differ between banks. In some cases, for example, banks offer customers assistance in disposing of assets, others offer other types of deals to reduce exposure to Russian assets, while others limit deals to disposals of assets only.
source: Noticias
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