A Russian court has ordered the seizure of UniCredit's assets, accounts, property and shares in subsidiaries as part of a lawsuit affecting the Italian bank.
The decision by the St. Petersburg arbitration court covers UniCredit's securities, real estate and accounts worth €462.7 million, as well as 100% of the shares in UniCredit Leasing and UniCredit Garant, Reuters reported.
UniCredit is one of the guarantor banks on a contract to build a gas processing plant in Russia with Germany's Linde, which was terminated due to Western sanctions.
The court is ruling on a claim by Russian company RusChemAlliance, which is seeking 443.8 million euros from UniCredit under bank guarantees granted in 2021, plus 4.47 million euros in penalties.
Highlighting the risks of doing business in Russia following the imposition of Western sanctions over the war in Ukraine, the Italian bank had said in its 2023 report that it had been sued in a St Petersburg court by a Russian energy company over claims on guarantees totalling €444m.
The report stated that the Russian company, which was not named, had absorbed the guarantees by claiming payment from UniCredit. The lender was unable to meet them due to EU sanctions. /BGNES
