Russia-Ukraine War: SBI halts trade with sanctioned Russian entities

"No transactions involving entities, banks, ports or vessels appearing" on a U.S., European Union or United Nations sanctions list shall be processed irrespective of the currency of the transaction, said a letter sent by State Bank of India (SBI) to certain clients, Reuters reported.

"We have a significant international presence and we need to comply with U.S. and EU regulations as we are present in those jurisdictions and we cannot be seen as not adhering to these rules," a senior SBI executive was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Countries across the world have condemned Moscow's "special operation" on Ukraine, which is the biggest assault on a European state since World War Two, and imposed a large number of sanctions in a bid to cripple Russia's might.

In its letter, SBI urged its clients to exercise "extra precautions" while transacting with entities in sanctioned countries, according to the report.

So far, India has not publicly condemned Russia, which is its longstanding defense and trade ally, and called for resolution of the issues through diplomacy and dialogue.

Many top Indian corporate houses have deep links with the state-controlled lender, which has a large network of overseas branches.

SBI has also sought information from Indian oil companies about their exposure to Russia including stakes in Russian assets, funds received from Russia in the last year, and lenders involved in routing these transactions, the Reuters report said, quoting two senior energy industry sources.

Already, government-owned refiner Indian Oil has said it would no longer accept cargoes of Russian crude and Kazakh CPC Blend cargoes on a free on board (FOB) basis due to insurance risk.

In addition to oil companies, Indian fertilizer firms also deal extensively with Russia for imports of crop nutrients.