As U.S. President Biden announced the imposition of so-called “second-tier sanctions” on financial institutions globally supporting Russia’s special military operations in Ukraine, international financial markets rapidly tightened their attitudes toward Russia, and multinational banks began to review business transactions with Russia, especially cross-border transactions.

For two months, Turkish banks have led to a massive cessation of payments from Russia, which has led to Russian imports from Turkey being paralyzed. Importers in industries such as chemicals, automotive parts, clothing and footwear have been directly impacted. Even though the Russian side had planned to resolve this problem by January 25, the situation has worsened. In February, Russian companies faced closure of accounts in Turkish banks, and personal accounts also experienced difficulties.

In addition, banks in the UAE also restricted transactions with Russia and began closing personal and corporate accounts.Russian news media Vedomosti said the UAE banks did not accept funds from Russia or provide payments to Russia in the opposite direction, and continued to close corporate accounts owned by Russian citizens.

Since February this year, Chinas domestic commercial banks have also tightened the receipt audit of transfers to Russia, affecting the normal receipt of money for many foreign trade operations.

Maxim Blunt, an independent Russian journalist, said all the trouble was overlap during the Lunar New Year, when Russia had to start solving the problem by the beginning of March. This would not only hinder mutual trade, but also aggravate rail and port problems. The logistics chain between Russia and China has been overloaded and is now worsening due to inventory pressure and other issues. Russian consumers may face shortages or inflation.

On a global scale, U.S. sanctions pose a major challenge to Russia’s economy and international trade activities.The U.S. plans to announce its “major” sanctions proposal against Moscow on Friday, although it has not been clearly stated which industries will be affected, it is expected to further increase uncertainty in international financial markets.

In the current complex and changing international political and economic environment, and individuals need to deal with financial and trade affairs related to Russia more cautiously to avoid potential economic losses and legal risks. Global trade participants are closely watching the next U.S. sanctions measures and their impact on the international markets, hoping to find effective strategies to address current challenges.