Putin signs a decree on the exchange of investors' assets frozen in Russia and the West

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has signed a decree that will allow some of the assets of investors frozen in Russia to be exchanged for assets frozen in the West.

Source. This was reported by RBC.

The scheme, which should lead to the exchange of frozen assets of Russian investors with foreigners, will affect assets worth up to 100 thousand rubles.

This mechanism applies mainly to retail Russian investors and investments in securities.

At the first stage, the Russian authorities plan to unblock C-type accounts, where frozen assets of foreigners are kept, worth about 100 billion rubles.

Investors, as planned by the authorities, will be able to receive foreign money unfrozen in Russia instead of securities frozen abroad.

Earlier, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that the assets of more than 3.5 million Russian citizens worth 1.5 trillion rubles have been blocked abroad. At the first stage of the exchange of Russian assets for those of foreign investors, it is planned to unblock retail investors' accounts worth 100 billion rubles, Siluanov said.

According to Putin's decree, foreign investors will also be able to buy blocked foreign securities from Russians using funds from their C-type accounts, the newspaper said.

The idea of asset swaps has not found understanding in the EU. The European Commission is not aware of such proposals, its representative said:

"There are no negotiations with Russia on a potential asset swap either."

Russian officials said that they would prepare all the necessary documents anyway, in case the West changed its mind.