The head of the analytical department of the Russian bank BKF, Maxim Osadchiy, told TASS on Saturday June 4, that the inclusion of the National Settlement Depository (NSD) in the sixth package of EU anti-Russian sanctions is intended to push Russia into an artificial default.
The NSD is a Russian non-bank financial institution and central securities depository (CSD). It provides depository, settlement (bank account), and related services to financial market entities. It is 99.99% owned by the Moscow Exchange and is its settlement depository. It is used to service securities, including Russian government debt, and debts of 17 more legal entities. In March 2022, NSD’s accounts at international CSDs Euroclear and Clearstream (which together held €50 trillion of assets on behalf of investors) were blocked and frozen.
Osadchiy remarked: “The main consequence of the sanctions against NSD is that it stops conducting transactions in euros. Since NSD’s accounts with Euroclear and Clearstream have already been blocked, the new sanctions will not lead to significant changes for Russian investors.”
