Frozen Russian Assets Near £30 Billion as UK Tightens Grip
21/10/2025
The UK has frozen £28.7 billion in Russian-linked assets as of May 2025, according to the latest Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) Annual Review. This marks a significant increase from the £25.03 billion reported in the previous financial year. [gov.uk]
This escalation reflects the UK’s continued commitment to enforcing sanctions in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with OFSI stating that the Russian regime remains its top priority.
Year-on-Year Growth in Frozen Assets
The frozen asset total has grown steadily since February 2022, when the UK began imposing sanctions on Russian individuals, entities, and financial institutions. The latest figure—£28.7 billion—includes assets reported by UK institutions and reflects the cumulative impact of sanctions enforcement. [nampa.org]
Major Change Ahead: UK Moves to a Single Sanctions List
In a major regulatory shift, the UK government has announced that from 28 January 2026, the UK Sanctions List (UKSL)—published by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)—will become the sole official source for UK sanctions designations. The OFSI Consolidated List will be retired. [natlawreview.com]
This change is designed to:
- Simplify compliance screening
- Reduce duplication and false negatives
- Streamline vendor integrations
Firms conducting sanctions screening—especially in financial services, legal, and trade sectors—are advised to update their systems and policies now to reflect the UKSL as the authoritative source. [regulation...morrow.com]
What Firms should do:
- Switch to UKSL as the primary data source before January 2026
- Update identifiers from OFSI Group ID to UKSL Unique ID
- Review vendor integrations and ensure compatibility with the new list format
The UK government has published guidance to help firms prepare. [regulation...morrow.com]
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