The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs yesterday (24 March) revealed that Switzerland had to date frozen Russian assets of 5.75 billion Swiss francs ($6.17bn) under the new sanctions regime, Reuters has reported.
At a media conference Erwin Bollinger, a senior official at the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) agency overseeing sanctions, said: "Today, for the first time, I can give you an indication of the amount of frozen funds. To date, SECO has been notified of funds and assets totalling around 5.750 billion Swiss francs."
He added: "The cited number of far over 5 billion francs relates to a snapshot in time," Bollinger noted. "With further reports coming in and potential additions to EU sanctions lists, which Switzerland would also assume, it is likely this number will rise further."
Bollinger further said that the funds and assets were only blocked, not confiscated and ownership remains unchanged.
The next update is planned in two weeks.
