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Written question asked by Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative) on Thursday, 19 December 2024, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 7 January 2025. It was answered by Tulip Siddiq (Labour) on Wednesday, 8 January 2025 on behalf of the Treasury.

Chelsea Football Club: Sales

Question

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much interest has accrued on the £2.5bn seized following the sale of Chelsea Football Club.

Answer

The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), part of HM Treasury, is the authority for the implementation of financial sanctions in the UK.

An asset freeze does not involve a change in ownership of the frozen funds or economic resources, nor are they transferred to HM Treasury. The proceeds from the sale of Chelsea FC are therefore not held by the UK Government. They are currently frozen in a UK bank account after OFSI issued a licence to permit the sale of the football club.

Any interest accrued on these assets is subject to the asset freeze, to be frozen immediately by the person in possession or control of them.

In the latest Annual Review published in December 2023, OFSI announced that £22.7 billion in Russian Assets has been reported as frozen as of October 2023. This figure is provided in aggregate so as not to disclose the value of any funds held by particular designated persons and is a cumulative total of assets reported.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
21521
Session
2024-26
Transferred
Yes
Subjects
Sales Chelsea Football Club
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk