BISHKEK (Reuters) - Kyrgyz lender Keremet Bank on Thursday said it would challenge a decision by the U.S. Treasury to impose sanctions on it for allegedly creating a hub for trade payments and helping Russia to evade restrictions.
The United States on Wednesday imposed hundreds of sanctions targeting Russia, seeking to increase pressure on Moscow to halt its military action in Ukraine in the Biden administration's final days, including on firms such as Keremet in Kyrgyzstan and others in China it accused of helping Moscow evade sanctions.
"The bank will apply to OFAC (U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control) to appeal," Keremet Bank said in a statement. "Keremet Bank continues to operate in normal mode, fulfilling its obligations to clients and partners with an unwavering commitment to the principles of transparency, reliability and responsibility."
The U.S. Treasury accused Keremet Bank, a mid-sized Kyrgyzstan-based financial institution, of coordinating with Russian officials and sanctioned Russian defence sector lender Promsvyazbank.
"In 2024, the Kyrgyzstani Ministry of Finance sold a controlling stake in Keremet Bank to a firm strongly linked to a Russian oligarch with ties to the Russian government," the U.S. Treasury said. "The purchase of Keremet Bank was intended to create a sanctions evasion hub for Russia to pay for imports and receive payment for exports."
Kyrgyzstan's central bank said it was working to minimise the negative impact of sanctions on the country's banking system.