In a significant legal development, Moscow’s court has sided with the Russian Central Bank in its recent legal battle against Euroclear, a major clearing house based in Brussels. This decision stems from a lawsuit concerning a substantial amount of Russian assets frozen by the European Union.
The lawsuit, which sought compensation amounting to 18.2 trillion rubles ($249.7 billion), was filed after Russia lost control over its funds and securities held by Euroclear. Reports indicate that Moscow’s Arbitration Court ruled in favor of the Central Bank, fully supporting its claim.
According to RBC, a Russian news outlet, Euroclear’s legal representatives, Maxim Kulkov and Sergei Savelyev, expressed concerns over the fairness of the trial. Sergei Savelyev has stated that Euroclear plans to appeal the decision. Meanwhile, a representative from the Central Bank conveyed satisfaction with the outcome.
The European Union had initially frozen Russian assets amounting to 210 billion euros ($244 billion) as part of the sanctions following Russia’s military actions in Ukraine in February 2022. Euroclear is reportedly in possession of around 193 billion euros of these frozen assets.
The Central Bank initiated the lawsuit in December 2025. Notably, Moscow’s Arbitration Court decided to take on the case despite the EU’s abandonment of its earlier plan to utilize the frozen Russian assets for Ukraine’s benefit. This plan was dropped after Belgium resisted, citing concerns over potential retaliatory measures from Russia.
Instead, the EU opted for an alternative approach, securing a 90 billion euro loan from capital markets to provide Ukraine with an interest-free loan to address its military and economic needs over a two-year period. Russia’s Central Bank has criticized the EU’s actions as “illegal, contrary to international law,” emphasizing that they infringe upon “the principles of sovereign immunity of assets.”
