Phoenix 24
Changing who holds the money could redistribute the risk, but it would not eliminate the legal controversy.
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, Poland and the Baltic states are renewing efforts to use €210 billion in immobilized Russian central-bank assets to finance Ukraine. Approximately €185 billion is held by Euroclear, the Brussels-based securities depository, leaving Belgium particularly exposed to lawsuits, financial losses and possible Russian retaliation.
A proposal gaining support would transfer the assets from Euroclear to a new custodian owned and controlled collectively by the European Union. Ukraine’s Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko argues that this arrangement would replace Belgium’s individual exposure with shared responsibility among all 27 member states. The proposal remains informal and has not been endorsed by the European Commission.
Its advocates suggest invoking Article 122 of the EU treaties, an emergency provision allowing decisions by qualified majority. The Russian central bank would remain the nominal owner of the assets and could recover them once Moscow had paid war reparations to Ukraine. Belgium could receive compensation for any residual risks created by transferring the funds.
A second option involves creating a special-purpose vehicle that would leave the €210 billion principal untouched. The approximately €4 billion in annual extraordinary income generated by the assets could support bond issuance, with guarantees potentially provided by the European Stability Mechanism. This structure might mobilize substantial financing more quickly, although borrowing costs could exceed those of conventional joint EU debt.
Transferring custody would address only part of Belgium’s objection. The European Central Bank, Euroclear and several governments remain concerned that foreign states and investors could interpret the operation as confiscation of sovereign reserves. That perception could encourage capital to leave the eurozone, weaken confidence in the euro and expose European institutions to prolonged litigation. An EU custodian may therefore unlock the political discussion, but it cannot by itself resolve the deeper conflict between financing Ukraine and protecting Europe’s legal and financial credibility.
La verdad es estructura, no ruido. / Truth is structure, not noise.