Filipinos in Russia may experience some difficult in sending remittance to their families in the Philippines as major banks there face sanctions following Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin’s order to invade Ukraine, the Philippine Embassy in Moscow said.
According to the Philippine Embassy on Tuesday, the Ukraine-Russia conflict has resulted in sanctions imposed against Russian banks such as the Central Bank, VTB and Sverbank.
Aside from sanctions imposed by western countries, Russia imposed its own countersanctions, it added.
“As a result, we may experience a bit of an issue with sending our money out of Russia, specifically to support our families,” the Philippine Embassy said.
Nonetheless, the Philippine Embassy said they have been advised by the VTB that the bank is working to minimize the issues faced by their clients particularly in withdrawing or sending money overseas.
The Embassy advised those experiencing issues with their financial transactions to coordinate with the customer support of their respective banks.
“Feel free to contact your bank. You are their client and have the right to be properly served, especially if it is your hard -earned money and entrusted to the bank. Learn how to speak English with customer support,” the Philippine Embassy said.
“Most large banks in Russia are capable of providing English language support. We will also continue to watch for announcements and public service messages from our banks,” it added. (©Philippine Daily Inquirer 2022 / Neil Arwin Mercado)
