On June 29, 2022, the Russian Elites, Proxies and Oligarchs (REPO) Task Force issued a joint statement regarding achievements it has made in 100 days since REPO members committed to combining resources to isolate sanctioned Russians from the international financial system. Thus far, REPO reports that its members have blocked or frozen more than $30 billion worth of financial accounts and economic resources from sanctioned Russians and immobilized approximately $300 billion in Russian Central Bank assets. REPO members have also seized or frozen a number of luxury items from sanctioned Russians, including luxury real estate and luxury yachts and other vessels such as the Amadea, the Tango, the Amore Vero, the Rahil, and the Phi. REPO members have also made it more difficult for Russia to procure the technology it needs to sustain its war in Ukraine by restricting its access to the global financial system.
REPO reports that its members were able to achieve these objectives by expanding and implementing the respective legal frameworks necessary to freeze, seize, forfeit, and/or dispose of Russian assets. It has worked with private sector financial institutions to identify assets subject to sanctions and immobilize them. REPO members have also been instrumental in preventing Russia from evading sanctions and are grateful for the help of counties outside of the task force that made it possible for them to achieve these goals.
Going forward, the REPO task force will continue to maximize the impact of sanctions that were imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked war with Ukraine while guarding against the war’s effect on commodities markets and food supplies around the world. The task force will also continue to increase Russia’s costs for its war and work even closer with international partners, including the European Commission’s Freeze and Seize Task Force.
Department of Treasury Press Release