This July, financial institutions in the United Arab Emirates tightened control over the activities of Russian companies. Around 30% of businesses from Russia received notifications about restrictions on financial operations or the closure of their bank accounts.
The primary reasons for account closures included failure or delays in responding to bank inquiries, documentation errors, discrepancies between financial flows and declared activities, links to countries on the FATF “blacklist,” or connections to individuals/entities under international sanctions, among other factors.
Thorough checks began as early as February 2024, following the UK’s imposition of sanctions on UAE-based companies that had helped Russia circumvent international restrictions. The situation escalated further after the EU adopted its 18th sanctions package, which for the first time included Emirati entities linked to Russia.
UAE financial institutions are keen to avoid being re-listed on the FATF “grey list” due to ties with Russia and are now demonstrating their commitment to complying with the global sanctions regime.
