Russia Nears Default After US Blocks Bond Payment; Moscow Vows to Pay in Rubles

Russia Nears Default After US Blocks Bond Payment; Moscow Vows to Pay in Rubles
Russian ruble coins and banknotes pictured next to Russian ruble sign in Moscow on Aug. 13, 2021. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images
Andrew Moran
Updated:

Russia is inching closer to a technical default on its international debt after foreign banks declined to process payments of more than $600 million this week.

The United States prevented Moscow from completing dollar-denominated debt payments to bondholders from reserves parked at U.S. banks, noting that the Kremlin had to choose between exhausting its dollar reserves, generating more revenues, or slipping into default.

Andrew Moran
Andrew Moran
Author
Andrew Moran has been writing about business, economics, and finance for more than a decade. He is the author of "The War on Cash."
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