US lifts sanctions against former European branch of Russia's VTB Bank

The U.S. has removed the former European subsidiary of the Russian VTB Bank from its sanctions list, the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control said on April 2.

Germany-based Ost-West Handelsbank has been removed from the list, according to the information on the Treasury's website. The positions with names under which the bank used to operate earlier – VTB Bank Deutschland and VTB Bank Europe – were also struck down.

The U.S. announced extensive anti-Russian sanctions that also targeted VTB Bank at the offset of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

In the wake of the sanctions, German authorities wrested control of the Frankfurt-based subsidiary from its Russian parent in April 2022 and appointed a special representative to help run it.

VTB Europe officially changed its name to Ost-West Handelsbank in November 2023.

Since the outbreak of the full-scale war, the U.S. and its partners have imposed extensive sanctions against Russian entities, individuals, and other actors aiding Moscow's aggression against Ukraine.

The scope of the restrictions made Russia the single most sanctioned country in the world.

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The Kyiv IndependentKatie Marie Davies