Where are Russia’s frozen assets really held?

The debate over using immobilised Russian Central Bank assets to fund reparations for Ukraine has intensified after Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever blocked the EU’s ambitious plan to issue a €140 billion loan based on those frozen funds.

As Euronews wirtes in its analysis, De Wever’s frustration stems from the perception that Belgium is being unfairly targeted simply because the largest chunk of the immobilised reserves sits at Euroclear, the Brussels-based central securities depository.

“The fattest chicken is in Belgium, but there are other chickens around,” De Wever quipped. “Nobody ever talks about this.”

Indeed, despite repeated assertions by G7 allies that about €300 billion in Russian sovereign assets are frozen across Western jurisdictions, the precise locations and amounts remain largely opaque. Following De Wever’s comments, Euronews reached out to several countries identified as holding portions of these assets: France, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, the UK, the US, Canada, Japan and Australia. What it found was a patchwork of evasive responses and a striking lack of transparency.

Ironically, the clearest replies came from nations traditionally associated with financial secrecy. Luxembourg, which the European Parliament’s research service estimated to hold €10–20 billion in Russian sovereign assets, stated bluntly that “the amount of assets of the Central Bank of Russia currently immobilised in Luxembourg is below €10,000.”

Switzerland confirmed it holds 7.45 billion Swiss francs (around €8 billion) in Russian sovereign assets, kept in commercial banks. Although not part of the EU or G7, Switzerland said its government “will determine its position taking into account Swiss law, including international law… and the preservation of financial stability.”

Other Western powers were far less forthcoming. Germany declined to “disclose the volume or location of assets” citing EU sanctions law. Japan, which De Wever claimed holds as much as €50 billion, stated that it “does not disclose the information regarding the details of Russia's sovereign assets located in Japan.” France also refused comment, despite former finance minister Bruno Le Maire once citing €22.8 billion as frozen. The US Treasury did not reply at all.

By contrast, Belgium and Euroclear publish detailed reports on the immobilised assets — their composition, currency, and the windfall profits they generate. This level of transparency is unique, Euronews notes, and reflects Euroclear’s regulatory obligations as a central securities depository rather than a private financial institution.

According to Dr Szymon Zaręba of the Polish Institute of International Affairs, even his research efforts to locate the assets hit the same wall of silence.

“During our informal discussions with representatives of some G7 and EU member states, we did not receive any information regarding the reasons why data on the exact size of assets is not publicly available,” he said.

Zaręba dismissed the notion that transparency could trigger Russian retaliation, arguing, “After all, Russia knows exactly where its funds were deposited before the war broke out.”

The confusion is further muddied by the conflation of sovereign assets with those of sanctioned individuals.

The UK illustrates this tension: while Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper declared that “now is the time for international action to use Russia’s frozen sovereign assets to support Ukraine,” the government has provided no clear figure. Its oft-cited £28.7 billion in frozen assets excludes sovereign holdings entirely.

As Euronews concludes, the opacity surrounding these assets undermines the credibility of Western governments seeking to repurpose them for Ukraine’s recovery.

“There are no exact figures,” said sanctions expert Francis Bond. “The individual states may have some idea… but there’s very little public oversight.” In short, the location of Russia’s frozen billions remains one of the most consequential — and murkiest — questions in global finance.

By Sabina Mammadli