The confiscation of frozen Russian assets in the EU is illegal, and politicians have not discussed it with Euroclear, the head of the depository stated.
The Euroclear depository is prepared to sue European authorities involved in the confiscation of frozen Russian assets in the EU in any form for their transfer to Ukraine, should this occur. Such intentions were stated by the depository's CEO, Valerie Urben, in an interview with Le Monde published on Saturday, November 15.
Urben believes that any actions "even remotely resembling confiscation" of Russian assets would be illegal, the newspaper reports. The head of Euroclear warned of the possibility of legal action from Russia, as the confiscation of funds would contradict international law. Furthermore, the depository's head is concerned about the organization's status: "For Euroclear, the most important thing is reliability and trust. We are an important link that must remain reliable for the stability of financial markets."
According to Urben, if the European Union decides to take action that resembles confiscation, and the Euroclear board of directors determines that this negatively affects the organization's operations, a legal response would be possible. "There are laws. Depending on the legal framework, we will decide what we can and want to do," she stated. At the same time, Urben noted that the relevant lawsuit has not yet been prepared, but since 2022, Euroclear has expanded its legal team "from a dozen to about 200 employees."
