CySEC withdraws Russian FX broker Otkritie Capital's license

The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), the Cyprus financial regulator, announced that it has decided to withdraw the Cyprus Investment Firm license of Otkritie Capital Cyprus Ltd, due to the broker's decision to expressly renounce it.

Otkritie Capital Cyprus Ltd is owned by Russia's Otkritie FC Bank, one of the largest full-service commercial banks in Russia. Otkritie FC Bank has more than 440 offices in Russia. Igor Finogenov, CEO of the Eurasian Development Bank, co-founded Otkritie FC Bank. In August 2017 Otkritie was bailed out by the Central Bank of Russia, at a reported cost to the state of over $8 billion. The central bank later described Otkritie's capital as "largely fictitious". The Central Bank of Russia now holds a 99% ownership interest in Otkritie.

The Otkritie group actually owns another CySEC licensed entity called Otkritie Broker Ltd. That license is still active, although the company has not been operating actively.