Russia pays Eurobond coupons to correspondent banks

(Bloomberg) The Ministry of Finance of Russia said that due to growing speculation that the country is heading for default, foreign correspondent banks were paid in the amount of $110 million in interest payments on $2 billion bonds.

The minister later stated that he would comment separately on whether the payment was made to Citibank in London, Russia's Eurobond payment agent.

Russia had to pay coupons for both bonds by the end of Wednesday's trading day. If it did not do so within the grace period, this is the first time that the country has violated its obligations to foreign creditors since the Bolsheviks ignored the Tsar's debt in 1918.

Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has repeatedly warned that if it does not access foreign exchange reserves, Russia will pay in rubles, explaining the procedure for transferring cash to a local account. Pitch Rating said on Tuesday that payments in currencies other than dollars within the grace period would be considered a default. S&P Global Rating issued a similar statement this month.

Original note:

Russia pays Eurobond coupons to correspondent banks (correct answer)

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