Moscow Exchange to halt USD and euro trading as of June 13

Russia’s largest stock exchange, the Moscow Exchange (MOEX), has announced plans to halt trading in the U.S. dollar and the euro as of Thursday, June 13. 

The announcement came after the United States introduced a new package of financial sanctions against Russia on Wednesday, June 12. The latest measures target the Moscow Exchange, the National Clearing Center, and the National Settlement Depository, all of which act as intermediaries in dollar trading on the Russian foreign exchange market. 

Russia’s Central Bank said Wednesday that it will continue to make transactions in the U.S. dollar and the euro on the OTC market.

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned Russia’s second-largest stock exchange, SPB Exchange, in November 2023. Since the SPB Exchange specializes in trading foreign shares, the move rendered trading in American and European securities virtually impossible within Russia. The financial sanctions announced Tuesday target more than 300 Russian companies in total.