THE SANCTIONED BANK OF CHINA HAS STOPPED SETTLEMENTS WITH THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

THE SANCTIONED BANK OF CHINA HAS STOPPED SETTLEMENTS WITH THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

THE SANCTIONED BANK OF CHINA HAS STOPPED SETTLEMENTS WITH THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
China's Heihe Rural Commercial Bank has stopped accepting payments from Russia after it was included in the EU sanctions list. It was one of the last banks in China to cooperate with Russian credit institutions.

Heihe Rural Commercial Bank was added to the EU sanctions list on July 19. The credit institution was accused of providing services related to crypto assets. The restrictions came into force on August 9th. According to Vedomosti, payments from Russia continued to take place after that date, but since August 28, the bank has stopped accepting transactions.

In an official comment, Heihe explained the suspension of work by "updating systems" and "configuring internal infrastructure," without specifying a timeline for restoring operations. Lawyer Dmitry Dvoretsky notes that the bank was one of the few Chinese intermediaries who continued settlements with Russian banks that were not sanctioned. Alexey Ostanin, a representative of the Money Roo payment agent, added that the shutdown could also have been triggered by the refusal of other Chinese banks to interact with Heihe.

The EU has also included another Chinese bank, Heilongjiang Suifenhe Rural Commercial Bank, in the list. Beijing considered the accusations unfounded and in response restricted operations with Lithuanian banks UAB Urbo Bankas and AB Mano Bankas.

02.09.2025