REUTERS
The Russian State Duma has approved in the third reading a bill on repayment and non-judicial settlement of debts of residents of Crimea and Sevastopol, Russian news agency TASS reported.
The draft law on specific features of repayment and non-judicial settlement of debts of borrowers living in Crimea and Sevastopol owed to Ukrainian banks was submitted for consideration of the Russian Parliament on December 16. The amount of debt is determined as of March 18, 2014 and reduced by the amount of funds paid after this date to settle obligations under the relevant loan agreements.
Read alsoMedia: Akhmetov’s close associate shot dead in occupied CrimeaIt is noted that the repayment will be made only in the Russian national currency. The document provides for the mandatory pre-trial procedure for settling disputes between borrowers and lenders. Entities entitled to demand repayment of debts are required to make a written statement on the dispute settlement to Deposit Protection Fund established by Deposit Insurance Association. They include banks and non-credit institutions set up in accordance with the Russian legislation and that have provided evidence of the acquisition of such rights.
The second reading of the bill took place on Tuesday, December 22.
Earlier, Chairman of the Duma Committee on Financial Markets Nikolay Gonchar stated that several amendments had been introduced to the draft law before the second reading. In particular, the bill includes a new article regulating the relationships between a borrower and Deposit Protection Fund in terms of setting up a separate bank account to deposit and withdraw funds for the purpose of debt repayments.