Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine War in February 2022, Russia, Europe’s ice-hardened half-brother to the East, has been completely walled off from the West. The war and its knock-on effects have made Russia an agent of change, perhaps unwittingly at times, to the post-war global order. 

One of these disruptions intersects with the U.S.. When the U.S. sanctioned Russia and seized U.S. Treasuries from Russian accounts at the outbreak of the war, the international private and public banking community took notice. The “risk free rate” was only as risk free as Uncle Sam says so — especially if you interfere with his “speak softly and carry a big stick” agenda.

That Russia is at the center of a tectonic shift in geopolitics won’t be surprising to most. But they may be surprised to learn that, in the shadows, Russia has been influential in another area that intersects with finance and politics.