"If the transaction has not been blocked yet, the financial institution may be undertaking an internal investigation to determine the full details of the transaction. The only insight available during the financial institution's review would be from the financial institution directly; OFAC does not have insight into the internal investigation by the institution. Please be advised that, in the course of investigating a potential sanctions nexus, a bank may request additional details from its customer, as part of the bank's operations. This is not a request from OFAC. If a bank is unable to clarify a potential sanctions nexus, they may be unwilling or unable to process the funds forward."
Correspondence with Wells Fargo Bank
After receiving OFAC's response, there was no point in contacting this government agency. So I turned to Wells Fargo Bank. The appeal was made through Facebook Messenger recommended for contact on a special page of the Wells Fargo Bank website.(5) A bank employee who introduced himself as Richard spoke to me. This was at 3:05PM on May 28, 2024. (6)
Here is this short dialogue:
Pavel Kulyuk: "Hello. My name is Kuluk Pavel. I am an American-Ukrainian journalist and Pulitzer Prize nominee. On 05/09/24 CMG West LLC sent me a SWIFT payment in the amount of $... But the payment was blocked. As the company accountant said, this was done because: "It has to do with your location and sending money to your region." I am a Ukrainian citizen and live in the city of Kramatorsk, Donetsk region. This city is controlled by the Ukrainian government. Who can I discuss my problem with? I am ready to provide any documents to unblock my payment."
Richard: "I understand the importance of your transaction, Pavlo. If you are an account holder, please call us at 1-800-869-3557 or at the appropriate toll-free number for your location https://on.wf.com/6180eTn7q
"If a traditional phone call is not an option, you can consider using VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) or 'Internet calling' through Google Voice, Viber, and Skype to call 1-800-956-4442.
"Otherwise, please continue working with the sending party and your financial institution to explore your options.-Richard."
Pavel Kulyuk: "Richard, thank you very much for your answer. I am not an 'account holder'. Does this mean that the only way to find out the situation is to work with "with the sending party and your financial institution"? Is there anything you can do to help me?"
Richard: "Unfortunately, we are unable to assist you with this concern as we are unable to discuss account specific transactions with you or through this channel. If the sender is a Wells Fargo account holder, they can contact us for assistance in the same manner that you may contact your bank for more insight about this. -Richard".
Pavel Kulyuk: "Thank you very much Richard. Have a good day!"
As we see, in the absence of an account, the bank refuses to contact regarding payments. And all my hope is the accountant of the company that sent me the payment. But the accountant sent me back to where I had just come from. Those places were OFAC and Wells Fargo Bank. Now is the time to smile :)
A short Internet correspondence makes it possible to understand how 1 million Ukrainian citizens in the territory controlled by Ukraine found themselves under US sanctions.
Conclusions
When imposing sanctions, OFAC relies on the integrity of banks, which must work as needed and correctly. But in reality, it is not profitable for banks to check and clarify each payment, risking penalties for violating sanctions in case of an error. The profit from making these payments is less than the possible fines.
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