Euroclear
Euroclear is a Belgian-based central securities depository that settles transactions across European capital markets. Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it froze Russian sovereign assets held through the institution under EU sanctions, making it central to discussions about using those funds to support Ukraine. The company is headquartered in Brussels.
-
US proposed handing frozen Russian assets to Washington-controlled vehicle; Europeans reject plan
The United States proposed to European allies that part of roughly €260 billion in frozen Russian sovereign assets be unfrozen and transferred to a financial structure under US control, to revive peace talks on Ukraine, the Financial Times reported on 15 October. European delegates rejected the idea, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz publicly insisted the assets remain frozen in Europe with Europeans deciding their fate. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had no information about the proposal.
-
Ukraine asks EU to use frozen Russian assets to cover $78 billion 2027 financing gap
Ukraine's Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko told a donor meeting in Brussels on 29 September that Ukraine needs roughly $78 billion (about €69 billion) in additional financing for 2027 and called on the European Union to use frozen Russian sovereign assets to cover the gap. EU officials and several member states received the request skeptically, with Belgium opposed to any new use of the assets and the European Commission insisting that the priority is disbursing the already agreed €90 billion loan, whose budget tranche is held up pending Ukrainian reforms.
-
Proposal would shift frozen Russian assets from Euroclear and Clearstream to a new EU custodian
A proposal presented in Brussels by political commentator Hugo Dixon and co-authors would transfer frozen Russian Central Bank accounts from national depositaries — including Euroclear in Belgium and Clearstream in Luxembourg — onto the balance sheet of a special EU instrument acting as custodian. The mechanism, modelled on the post-Saddam transfer of Iraqi Central Bank accounts, is designed to shield depositaries and Belgium from Russian lawsuits while creating legal and financial groundwork for eventually using the assets in Ukraine's interests. Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko has publicly backed revisiting the use of frozen Russian assets, citing an acute wartime budget deficit.
-
EU weighs moving frozen Russian assets to new EU-level custodian to sidestep Belgian objections
European circles are exploring transferring frozen Russian assets from Belgium's Euroclear depository to a new EU-controlled custodian, which would shift legal responsibility from Belgium to the EU as a whole and remove Belgium's objections to using the funds for Ukraine. Ukraine's Foreign and Finance ministries have already submitted concrete proposals to Brussels. The European Commission treats the idea as theoretical, with no draft legislation prepared and several technical questions — legal basis, management structure, loss coverage in case of court rulings in Russia's favor — still open.
-
Ukraine tells EU it needs additional $27 billion by year-end, prompting surprise in Europe
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told European partners that Ukraine needs an additional $27 billion by the end of 2026 to cover a defence budget gap. The request, which came during a European visit for Ukraine's Independence Day, surprised officials who had agreed to a $100 billion-plus EU loan earlier in the year. European officials are now examining the size, causes, and justification of the deficit, while Ukraine is also seeking help from the United Kingdom, Canada, and Japan and pressing for the use of frozen Russian sovereign assets held at Euroclear in Brussels.
-
Ukraine's 2027 budget has $32.6 billion uncovered financing need, finance minister says
Ukraine's Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said the country's 2027 budget faces an uncovered financing need of $32.6 billion — the tightest budget situation since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. He called on European partners to seek additional sources of financing and presented a new proposal to redistribute roughly $300 billion in frozen Russian assets across all 27 EU member states.