Court rejects Euroclear's motion to dismiss Russian Central Bank's claim without consideration

MOSCOW. Jan 19 (Interfax) - The Moscow Arbitration Court has rejected Belgian Euroclear's motion to dismiss the Russian Central Bank's claim against the depository without consideration, the arbitration database says.

The court issued the ruling in a closed session.

The court will continue to process the Russian Central Bank's claim against the depository, which amounts to 200 billion euros (18.2 trillion rubles), on March 4, 2026.

The Russian Central Bank asked for the hearing to be in a closed session, while Euroclear raised objections. The court ultimately decided to meet in a closed session (due to commercial confidentiality).

The Russian Central Bank filed a claim against Euroclear with the Moscow Arbitration Court on December 12, 2025. The regulator linked the claim to the damage sustained by the Russian Central Bank "due to the illegal actions of Euroclear" and the officially announced the European Commission plans to authorize the indefinite freezing of the Central Bank's funds and to use the Russian regulator's assets for transfer to third parties.

The Central Bank estimated the loss sustained across all asset types as of December 1, 2025, at 200.1 billion euros (18.173 trillion rubles at the official exchange rate on that date). These claims consist of actual damages of 181.5 billion euros and lost profits (potential income from assets) of 18.6 billion euros, a source familiar with the claim told Interfax.

The EU, the United States, and some other countries immobilized Russian international reserves in spring 2022 in response to its operations in Ukraine. The sanctions blocked Russia's access to around $300-billion reserves. Central Bank head Elvira Nabiullina said later that claims would be drafted in that regard.