Russian banks may be blocked from using SWIFT, a payment system that enables reliable and secure financial transactions, as part of restrictions against Moscow, in what one official has called a potential “spiral of sanctions.”
“It’s no secret that there are threats, primarily from the United States, to disconnect Russia from the SWIFT system,” said Dmitry Birichevsky, director of the Economic Cooperation Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry.
However, the senior official doesn’t think America will act on this threat any time soon: “I’m actually confident that we won’t be disconnected from SWIFT anytime soon, and maybe never,” he said, noting that Russia would be able to come to payment agreements with their trading partners anyway.
Meanwhile, the country has created its own alternative, called SPFS, which works domestically, and Moscow is looking to expand the system internationally.
Russia may be cut off from SWIFT as part of West’s “spiral of sanctions,” warns foreign ministryRead More
