For certain Russian financial institutions blocked in February 2022 pursuant to E.O. 14024, a short-term wind-down period is authorized. General License (GL) 3 authorizes a wind-down period of 30 days for transactions involving State Corporation Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs Vnesheconombank (VEB), and GL 11 authorizes a wind-down period of 30 days for transactions involving VTB Bank Public Joint Stock Company, Public Joint Stock Company Bank Financial Corporation Otkritie, or Sovcombank Open Joint Stock Company. These authorizations also apply to any entity in which these financial institutions own, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, a 50 percent or greater interest.
GLs 3 and 11 authorize U.S. persons to engage in transactions ordinarily incident and necessary to exit operations, contracts, or other agreements that were in effect prior to the date of blocking involving the specified blocked Russian financial institutions, provided that such transactions do not involve a debit to a blocked account on the books of a U.S. financial institution (see FAQ 990). For example, a U.S. financial institution may take steps necessary to collect on outstanding loans made to a blocked person, including exercising rights to any collateral related thereto, as authorized wind-down activity, provided the transaction does not involve a debit to a blocked account on the books of a U.S. financial institution (unless separately authorized). A U.S. financial institution may also take steps necessary to pay outstanding loans, provided that, if such payment is for the benefit of a blocked person, it must be transferred into a blocked account. Similarly, a U.S. financial institution may take steps necessary to close a correspondent account maintained for a blocked person; however, funds in the correspondent account may not be returned to the blocked person, and must remain blocked, absent separate authorization from OFAC.
GLs 3 and 11 authorize only new or continued business activities that are ordinarily incident and necessary to wind-down activities. Wind-down activities do not include the continued processing of funds transfers, securities trades, or other transactions involving a blocked person that were part of ongoing business activities prior to the imposition of sanctions, unless separately authorized (see, e.g., GLs 8, 9, and 10). Moreover, GLs 3 and 11 do not apply to all Russian financial institutions blocked in February 2022, such as Promsvyazbank Public Joint Stock Company or Joint Stock Commercial Bank Novikombank, or transactions involving other persons blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024, other than the blocked Russian financial institutions specified in GLs 3 and 11.
In addition to GLs 3 and 11, OFAC issued GL 12 to authorize U.S. persons to reject, rather than block, prohibited transactions involving specified blocked Russian financial institutions for 30 days. This authorizes, for example, a U.S. financial institution to reject, rather than block, an attempted unauthorized funds transfer until the expiration of GL 12. The authorization provided in GL 3 expires at 12:01 eastern daylight time, March 24, 2022. The authorizations provided in GLs 11 and 12 expire at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time, March 26, 2022.
For more information on the prohibitions that apply to Russian financial institutions blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024 in February 2022, or related authorizations, please see FAQ 974.
For guidance regarding transactions involving securities and derivatives contracts related to the blocked persons listed above, see FAQ 982.