The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) has ousted four Ukranian banks from the Crimean region.
Crimean branches of Arkada, Raifessen Aval, Express Bank and Energobank have been shut down, adding to the list of banks that have either withdrawn from the region, or been forced to leave.
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The CBR said: "The decision to close the offices of several Ukrainian banks was caused only by the need to protect interests of depositors and clients’ legitimate rights, which were being violated."
The central bank added that there was no prospect of the banks, all registered in Kiev, being allowed to resume operations in what it called "the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol."
In May, the CBR called a halt to the operations of nine Ukranian banks including an affiliate of UniCredit – Ukrsotsbank and a subsidiary of BNP Paribas – UkrSibbank.
The other banks forced out of the region were Delta Bank, PJSC Marfin Bank, CityCommerceBank, Forum Bank, Avtokrazbank and Platinum Bank.
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By GlobalDataRaiffeisen Bank Aval had already announced plans to close its remaining branches before it was ousted from the Crimea, where it had 32 branches before Russia’s annexation of the peninsula.
A spokesperson for the bank said: "The branches are closing because they will have to operate under Russian law and there are contradictions between Russian and Ukrainian law."
Privatbank, Ukraine’s largest bank, had already closed all of its 339 branches in Crimea. The bank had previously invested £180m ($300m) in the region.
Fast food vendor McDonald’s has also shut down its restaurants in Crimea, although it said the decision had "nothing to do with politics".
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