#62024CJ0801EU Court Upholds Asset Freeze on Russia’s National Settlement Depository
AI-generated summary for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. See the original source for the authoritative text.
The EU Court of Justice confirms that the EU can keep Russia’s National Settlement Depository on its sanctions list and freeze its funds and economic resources. The Court accepted that NSD materially or financially supported the Russian government, and that the Council gave enough reasons for the listing. The ruling matters for banks, brokers, custodians, investors, and companies with assets or securities linked to NSD. It reinforces the EU’s broad approach to Russia sanctions and makes clear that customer hardship or commercial disruption does not automatically outweigh sanctions goals tied to Ukraine.
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Key Changes
- Confirms the EU asset freeze against Russia’s National Settlement Depository.
- Clarifies that material or financial support for the Russian government can justify sanctions listing.
- Signals that customer losses or market disruption do not automatically make EU sanctions disproportionate.
Obligations
What this law requires
EU restrictive-measures rules under Decision 2014/145/CFSP and Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 allow the Council to list persons or entities that materially or financially support the Government of the Russian Federation, resulting in freezing of their funds and economic resources.
The Court confirmed that NSD’s inclusion on the EU Russia sanctions list could be maintained because the Council had sufficiently stated reasons for finding that NSD materially or financially supported the Russian government.
Financial operators must treat listed entities such as NSD as subject to EU asset-freeze measures under Regulation (EU) No 269/2014, including freezing funds and economic resources linked to the listed entity.
The Court indicated that customer hardship or commercial disruption caused by the freezing of assets linked to NSD does not automatically outweigh the objectives of EU sanctions responding to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.