Investment Chamber as of March 25 to start accepting applications from Russian investors to exchange blocked assets

MOSCOW. March 11 (Interfax) - The Russian government commission for overseeing foreign investments has appointed the Investment Chamber to organize the exchange of Russian investors' blocked foreign securities for funds of non-residents in type "C" accounts, the Finance Ministry said in materials on its website.

The Investment Chamber has said that it will be accepting applications from resident individuals from 10:00 a.m. Moscow time on March 25 until 7:00 p.m. Moscow time on May 8, inclusive. Non-residents will be able to submit applications from 10:00 a.m. Moscow time on June 3 until 7:00 p.m. Moscow time on July 5, inclusive. Settlements as part of the asset exchange are due to take place on July 29.

The transaction to buy foreign securities will comprise four stages.

At the first stage, Russian investors, through their respective brokers, trustees, or mutual fund management companies, must send irrevocable applications to the Investment Chamber to sell blocked securities. There will be no commissions or other fees charged to sellers.

Residents may present securities for redemption initially totaling no more than 100,000 rubles in value. The initial value of each security in an application will be set in rubles at the exchange rate of the Central Bank of Russia as based on the closing price of trading on March 22, 2024.

At the second stage, the auction organizer will form a single pool from the securities presented for redemption and divide it into lots that are as identical in content and value as possible. The auction organizer will then set a single starting bid for all lots, which may not be less than the average value of all lots.

At the third stage, non-residents may send applications to the auction organizer to purchase lots for rubles at a price not lower than the starting bid. They will be able to withdraw the application only to improve price conditions.

At the fourth stage, the Investment Chamber, resulting from the competitive selection of applications from non-residents, will determine a single final sale price for all lots, which will not be lower than the starting bid. If the applications of non-residents are approved, then the securities will be transferred to the special transit custody accounts that allow for transferring acquired assets from the Russian depository infrastructure to a foreign infrastructure without additional permission on the part of Russia. The funds for the securities will in turn be transferred to the accounts of brokers, trustees, or mutual fund management companies for further transfer to resident individuals.

Unsold securities are not written off from the securities accounts of the respective owners, and the funds of non-residents not used in the repurchase are returned to the respective ruble accounts in this case, including to type "C" accounts.