Russia's largest bank is withdrawing from the European market. Sberbank has announced that it is leaving while its branches are losing money and customers are withdrawing their money.

The bank said it could no longer provide liquidity to its European divisions, but also that its capital and the quality of its assets were sufficient to make payments to all depositors.

It is not specified how the withdrawal from Europe will take place - through voluntary renunciation of license and bankruptcy or sale of assets.

Yesterday, the European Central Bank ordered Sberbank to close European branches due to the mass withdrawal of deposits in Austria, Slovenia and Croatia since Russia invaded Ukraine.

By 2021, Sberbank has assets in eight countries: Austria, Germany, the Czech Republic, Bosnia, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia and Slovenia. Prior to the aggravation of the geopolitical situation, a plan was announced for the sale of part of its assets in Europe in the amount of 7.3 billion euros. The fate of this plan remained unknown.

Sberbank also claims that there is a risk to the security of employees and branches across Europe.

Earlier, human rights activists reported that Sberbank had begun blocking cards from Russians who made donations to Ukrainian funds, asking them to “clarify the need for the operation.”

The Swiss division of the bank is not affected.

/Dnevnik

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