Banks, EU – Baltic States, Financial Services, Latvia

Therefore Rietumu Banka offers its customers to exchange their U.S. dollar funds to euros as well as to use these funds for payments.

"Specialists of the bank shall provide all necessary support to the clients. The remaining USD funds will be converted to euros automatically," said the bank's spokeswoman, Eleonora Gailisa.

The Management Board of Rietumu Banka said it had made the decision because of possible complications in maintaining functionality of payments in the U.S. dollars due to the reputational risk of the Latvian banking system.

"The decision will remain in force until the moment when the questions of international partners regarding risk of money laundering in the Latvian banking system will be taken off the table and reputation of the system will be recovered," Gailisa said.

In 2017, Rietumu Banka made a profit of EUR 35.451 million and is one of the largest banks in Latvia after Swedbank, ABLV Bank and SEB Banka.

The bank's main shareholders are Esterkin Family Investments (33.12%), Maltese company Boswell (International) Consulting Limited (33.11%), and Suharenko Family Investments (17.34%).

Rietumu Banka's bonds are quoted on the Baltic Bond List of the Nasdaq Riga stock exchange.

As reported, the question of the reputation of the Latvian banking system was brought to the fore in mid-February when the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury published a report proposing sanctions against Latvia's ABLV Bank over money laundering schemes that have been aiding North Korea's nuclear program and illegal activities in Azerbaijan, Russia and Ukraine.

Following the FinCEN report, the Latvian financial watchdog, the Finance and Capital Market Commission, acting on the instructions from the European Central Bank (ECB), ordered ABLV Bank to stop all payments as of February 19.

Shareholders of ABLV Bank at an extraordinary meeting on March 26 made a decision to start the liquidation process in order to protect interests of its clients and creditors. The bank's management has rejected all the allegations made in the FinCEN report and is determined to refute them.