Discussions ongoing with Central Bank of Russia regarding launch of trading in blocked shares; no specific deadlines set - SPB Exchange CEO
YEKATERINBURG. Nov 12 (Interfax) - The SPB Exchange continues to discuss with the Central Bank of Russia the possibility to launch exchange trading in blocked foreign securities, SPB Exchange CEO Yevgeny Serdyukov said.
"We are in talks with the regulator to ensure, on the one hand, that our trading can be launched on the exchange, and on the other, that management companies are not harmed. We are in discussions," Serdyukov told reporters on the sidelines of the Russian National Association of Securities Market Participants (NAUFOR) Ural Conference.
"There is no timeline," Serdyukov said in response to a possible timeline for the launch.
In October, Serdyukov said that the SPB Exchange was technically ready to launch trading in blocked shares, though he saw difficulties owing to the revaluation of management companies' portfolios. "We need assistance from the Central Bank that should provide us with clarifications so that management companies would not be forced to revalue their portfolios when trading on the exchange begins," he explained.
Central Bank Deputy Governor Philipp Gabunia later said that the regulator would analyze the SPB Exchange's request.
In July, Serdyukov said that the SPB Exchange hoped to begin trading the blocked securities by the end of summer.
The United States Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) included the SPB Exchange in the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) List in November 2023.
Trading in foreign securities on the SPB Exchange was then suspended after the introduction of U.S. sanctions, and investor assets totaling around $3 billion were blocked. As the exchange explained, foreign counterparties, including those from friendly jurisdictions, suspended interaction with the trading platform owing to concerns about liability for violating the U.S. sanctions regime, including the application of secondary sanctions.
