Russia cancels banking licence of American Express subsidiary

(Reuters) - Russia's central bank on Tuesday cancelled the banking licence of American Express Co's Russian subsidiary after the U.S. lender's unit filed a voluntary liquidation request.

Russian President Vladimir Putin decreed in May that American Express could liquidate its Russian business, a little over two years after the company had suspended all its operation in Russia in response to what the bank called Russia's "unjustified attack on the people of Ukraine".

The bank ranked 300th in Russia's banking system in terms of assets, the central bank said. Since mid-2022, foreign banks have required Putin's approval to exit the market or sell stakes in their Russian business.

The bank's Russian unit filed a liquidation application in early July, Russia's corporate registry, SPARK, showed.

American Express did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

In March 2022, shortly after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which Russia called a "special military operation", American Express said it had dozens of staff inside Russia. It was not immediately clear how many staff the bank still has in the country.

(Reporting by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Mark Potter)

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