The heads of Western companies will pay for cooperation with Russia with their financial freedom

Chairman of the Economic Affairs Committee tells in his column about the pressure through the banking compliance system on global businesses that continue to sponsor Russian aggression.

In the context of the ongoing sanctions pressure, there still remain those international businesses that prefer Russian money to ethics and legality, as well as those who are not directly affected by the sanctions yet.

Obviously, Ukraine must rely on itself and find even more extraordinary, non-trivial ways to set its face against the Russian evil and the financial flows that feed it.

The Ukrainian unit of the International Working Group on Russian Sanctions (The Yermak-McFaul Group) managed to find such a point for applying efforts, which can become the last straw that breaks the camel's back.

The National Agency on Corruption Prevention ("NACP"), part of the Yermak-McFaul working group, has already announced that they have appealed to the Refinitiv (an American-British global provider of financial market data and infrastructure) regarding global companies that are not ashamed of making money in Russia and with Russia and continue to fuel the Russian economy and hence – the Russian aggression, despite their public "promises".

Рart of the Yermak-McFaul task force, announced that they approached.

The Western world has managed to build a very effective system of banking compliance, which is sensitive to any risky transactions and dubious reputations of payers and recipients of funds.

Almost every bank regularly checks its entire set of clients with the World-Check - a database of Politically Exposed Persons and heightened risk individuals and organizations, used around the world to help to identify and manage financial, regulatory and reputational risk.

The financing of terrorism takes a very special place among the disturbing factors, and to counter it has become a noble endeavor throughout the civilized world. Connection with terrorists in any form, including profiting from them and financing structures involved with them, is a "red card" for any financial institution and is strictly monitored by World-Check.

For all Ukrainians the war crimes of Russians, blackmailing the authorities, bombing of civilian infrastructure, cynical killing of women, children and the elderly people despite the incapability of Russian army to achieve any serious success on the battlefield, are an unconditional act of terrorism.

Ukraine, Lithuania and Latvia have already recognized Russia as a sponsor of terrorism. A similar resolution is submitted by US senators to the President of the United States of America.

Needless to say, the financing of the Russian military machine, including those associated with global businesses that continue to operate in the Russian Federation, contribute to increase its income and in other forms fuel its terrorist activity.

Therefore, Ukrainian authorities and volunteers are currently focused on

▪️ global retail chains such as #METRO, #Auchan, #LeroyMerlin, which directly declared the priority of the Russian market and continue their operation in Russia;

▪️ Greek shipowners represented by the top 5 companies #TMSTankers, #MinervaMarine, #DeltaTankers, #DynacomTankersManagement, #Thenamaris, which took over the lion's share of oil traffic;

▪️ western technology companies that continue to equip the aggressor's army with military technologies, such as #DMGMori;

▪️ as well as commercial hi-tech businesses that support the social and digital ecosystem of the Russian Federation, one of the most relevant now is #Naspers, with the help of which the Kremlin’s military leadership hires soldiers and spreads propaganda of war and violence.

Today, after almost 6 months of war, the businesses that remain in Russia are obviously doing it consciously, which means that the decision makers of these companies are absolutely loyal to terrorism.

The NACP lists the owners and managers of such businesses as international war sponsors and will do everything possible to ensure that the World-Check database contains information about their high-risk activities, as it has publicly stated.

Public initiatives, such as, for example, the Dont Fund Russian Army, do not lag behind the state. Volunteers of the economic front send thousands of letters to Western businesses, draw the attention of relevant companies, their customers and their officials, and appeal to every regulatory body they can reach out to. 

The mentioned Refinitiv company holds a very special place in such communication, designed to curtail any operations of responsible and western values-driven business with Russia and in Russia.

According to volunteers and the NACP, some companies are making direct contact, while Refinitiv has kept silent for now. 

I believe, however, that our endeavors are unconditionally right and just and Ukraine shall be heard and supported by the world regulators of the financial sector.

Dmytro Natalukha

Chairman of the Economic Affairs Committee of the Parliament of Ukraine