British companies risk their accounts being closed due to trade with Ukraine.

Since part of Ukraine is occupied by the Russians, the British banks HSBC, Santander UK, and others may over-insure and close business accounts, explaining this by the need to comply with sanctions against Russia.

Politico published a letter from British-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce (BUCC) Co-Chair Bate Toms to the Minister of Finance of Great Britain, Andrew Griffith, in which he describes the scale of the problem. In the letter, he notes that conducting even one transaction with Ukraine may lead to account closure. “British banks, as a rule, refuse to open accounts if any trade with Ukraine is envisaged,” Toms writes. He warned that the economies of both countries suffer from such actions.

Toms’ information was confirmed by another business association – the British-Ukrainian Business Council. Its representative said account closures were an ongoing problem and added that he understood the banks’ position but urged them to use common sense.