Sberbank, Russia's largest lender, says it is leaving the European banking market in the face of Western sanctions against Moscow over its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
The bank said in a statement on March 2 that because of an order from Russia's central bank, it could no longer supply liquidity to its European subsidiary banks.
"In the current environment, Sberbank has decided to withdraw from the European market. Subsidiary banks of the group faced abnormal cash outflows and threats to the safety of employees and branches," the statement said.
Sanctions against Sberbank after Russia's invasion of Ukraine were imposed by the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, but so far the European Union has not included it on the list of Russian banks the bloc is disconnecting from the SWIFT banking system.
The bank noted that all customer deposits are insured in accordance with local regulations and that the bank's assets "are sufficient to make payments to all depositors."
