BLUF
In late February, the European Central Bank deployed its most powerful financial weapon against Russian aggression; the US announced that the Federal Reserve would impose sanctions upon the Russian central bank.Summary
This article by David Frum, writing for The Atlantic, makes the following points:
- The Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank moved hard, fast, and together.
- Central-bank sanctions are so devastating that they may do more damage than Western governments wish and bankrupt the entire Russian banking system.
- A partial cut-off is also hitting Russia from the 'Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication'', (SWIFT)system.
- SWIFT is a messaging technology that enables the safe and sure electronic transmission of funds.
- Despite Russia having around $630 billion in reserves, those reserves are controlled by foreign central banks; and if Russia’s foreign income slows while it is waging a costly war against Ukraine, it will need its reserves badly.
References
Recent Runway Posts related to this topic:
- RUSSIAN-UKRAINE CONFLICT—RAAF RUNWAY COLLECTION
- RAAF RUNWAY: RATIONALE, GUIDELINES, LEARNING OUTCOMES, ETC.
References from the Web:
- MAR 2022 Explainer: Russia could work around SWIFT ban but with high costs—Reuters
- MAR 2022 Swift: ejecting Russia is largely symbolic – here’s why—The Conversation
- MAR 2022 Russia’s Money Is Gone—Bloomberg
