Citigroup was fined $6.3 million in the U.K. for violating sanctions against Russia
Most of Citibank’s sanctions violations occurred in the first few months of 2022 / Photo: Unsplash.com / Declan Sun
British authorities fined Citibank more than $6.3 million (4.7 million pounds) for conducting hundreds of transactions on accounts that should have been frozen under sanctions against Russia.
Details
The U.K. Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) stated on September 2 that most of Citibank’s violations occurred between February and November 2022. Some transactions, which Citigroup voluntarily reported to the OFSI, continued through 2025. Over the course of four years, a total of 970 payments were made, totaling more than 19.7 million pounds ($26.6 million). The regulator described the violations as “substantial and significant” and noted that they occurred across various divisions and systems of the bank.
Some of the accounts were used by 29 entities owned or controlled by the Russian shipping company “Sovcomflot,” according to the OFSI statement. The bank processed 328 transactions totaling 5.4 million pounds ($7.3 million) for these companies.
A Citi spokesperson told Bloomberg that the bank is pleased with the conclusion of the OFSI investigation and that it had cooperated “proactively” with the British regulator.
By 2025, Citigroup had virtually ceased providing institutional banking services in Russia, Bloomberg added.
This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor
