Turkish banks refuse to work with Russia due to US pressure

Banks are breaking correspondent relationships and refusing to process payments without formally closing contracts. One of the publication’s interlocutors added that there are exceptions for subsidiaries of foreign banks in the Russian Federation.

According to the second source, the problems started a long time ago, but at the end of last year the situation worsened considerably and affected almost all Turkish banks, including Nurol Bank and Emlak Bank. Approximately 40 Russian banks worked with the first credit institution. Correspondent accounts of national credit institutions were opened in Turkey in lira, dollars and other currencies, and individual banks also accepted payments in rubles.

Another interlocutor stated that, due to American pressure, Chinese banks are also breaking relations with Russia. The day before, Bloomberg reported that Chinese state banks are tightening restrictions against Russian clients after the United States warned of secondary sanctions. According to the agency, two Chinese credit institutions have already begun to monitor their Russian businesses.

RIA Novosti, citing a source from one of the country’s state banks, writes that Turkey plans to find a solution to the problem of transfers from the Russian Federation by the end of the week.

• In the spring of 2022, international payment systems Visa and Mastercard left the Russian market, after which their cards stopped working abroad. Until September, cards from the Russian payment system Mir worked in Turkey, but after threats from the United States to impose sanctions for cooperation, local banks began to suspend their acceptance. Turkish bank cards are required for non-cash payments and transfers of funds from Russian accounts to them.