Overview

• Lagarde told EU lawmakers any scheme must comply with international law, saying the ECB is very attentive to the process and wants agreement from all asset holders.
• She warned that a legally contentious approach could damage the euro’s credibility and threaten financial stability by deterring investors from euro assets.
• EU policymakers are developing a non-confiscatory design that would invest immobilized cash in European Commission zero-coupon bonds guaranteed by EU governments to back a “Reparations Loan” to Ukraine.
• Roughly 210 billion euros in Russian sovereign assets were frozen in the West, with about 200 billion now sitting as cash at Euroclear in Belgium after earlier bond holdings matured.
• Switzerland’s SECO said it is concerned about ripple effects on the global financial system and emphasized adherence to jurisprudence and financial stability.