BRITISH lender Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) said Friday it had placed restrictions on its lending in Russia following developments in Ukraine.

    The European Union cut off financing for five major Russian banks Thursday over Moscow’s support for separatist rebels in Ukraine. The measures aim to prevent Russian banks from raising money on Western capital markets.

    Part-nationalized RBS said it had reviewed credit ratings, adjusted lending limits and placed additional credit restrictions on new business in Russia. It is also reviewing how it is exposed to the international sanctions.

    RBS, which is 81-percent owned by the British Government, said it had reduced lending in Russia during the first half of this year by 100 million pounds to 1.8 billion pounds (US$3 billion). That included 900 million pounds of corporate lending and 600 million of lending to banks.

    RBS said nearly half of the bank lending was fully hedged. The bank said its total Russian exposure, including assets held off balance sheet for clients, amounted to 2.1 billion pounds.

    RBS also said Friday a vote by Scotland to become independent from the rest of the United Kingdom could significantly increase its costs and have a material impact on its business, repeating an earlier warning.

    (SD-Agencies)