Economy Minister Axel Kicillof has revealed the government sent a letter to Citigroup asking how the bank will react, after New York district judge Thomas Griesa decided not to kill an injunction that blocked Citi from processing interest payments on US$2.3 billion of Argentina bonds.
Kicillof said the letter was sent to avoid uncertainty about Citibank’s actions.
“We don’t know what they want to do and what they will do, so the Economy Ministry asked them, in order to avoid uncertainty,” he told reporters today during the launch of the COM.PR.AR program.
The bank has portrayed itself as an innocent third party stuck with an untenable choice between ignoring Griesa, and putting its Argentina banking license in jeopardy.
“There were comments about removing their license to operate in Argentina, because that’s what Citibank told Griesa,” the Minister stated.
“I would say they have already incriminated themselves in a crime that they did not yet commit,” he added.
“You [Citibank] are an Argentine business, subject to Argentine banking law,” concluded Kicillof, echoing yesterday’s statements, when he warned the bank that breaking Argentine law would have its consequences.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald