English

Royal Bank of Scotland ceases cooperation with Minsk over human rights issues

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has announced that it will no longer do any deals for the Belarusian government following a campaign by human rights groups, reported The Independen, BelaPAN said.

The majority state-owned bank took part in a deal to issue more than $800 million in the Belarusian government’s Eurobonds earlier this year.

While many international enterprises refuse to invest in Belarus and its “repressive regime,” RBS became involved in January this year, alongside Russia’s Sberbank, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank.

Belarusian activists of Free Belarus Now confronted RBS executives last week in Edinburgh along with members of Index on Censorship, which has campaigned against British businesses conducting deals inside Belarus while Alyaksandr Lukashenka remains in power, according to the report. Following the meeting, the bank issued a statement saying it would no longer do business with Minsk.

“Given sanctions, the deteriorating political situation in Belarus and the fact that it has reneged on key elements of the IMF program, RBS has ceased any type of capital-raising for or on behalf of the Belarus Republic, and we have no plans to change that position until these issues have been resolved," said RBS in the statement. “In assessing where we do business, we have a responsibility to consider a number of factors, including social and ethical issues and compliance with the letter and spirit of all international sanctions.”

According to The Independent, RBS is the only British bank to have recently done financial deals directly with the Belarusian government.

"We're delighted that RBS has heeded our calls to stop acting as a broker for authoritarian President Lukashenka," Mike Harris, head of advocacy at Index on Censorship, told the BBC.

"This couldn't come at a more crucial time, he said. “The government of Belarus needs nearly $1 billion a month in foreign capital. RBS has sent a clear signal not to risk investing in a regime that violates fundamental human rights and may not last."