Goldman Sachs lawyer says suit by Russia’s Otkritie Bank should be heard in London

MOSCOW (Reuters) – A lawyer for Goldman Sachs argued in a Moscow court on Thursday that a $6.3 million lawsuit against it by Russia’s Otkritie Bank should be heard instead in London.

Otkritie says Goldman owes the money in connection with a derivatives agreement and wants the claim to be handled in the Moscow Arbitration Court.

At Oktritie’s request, Goldman’s assets in Russia including its 5% stake in Russia’s largest toy retailer, Detsky Mir, were sequestered last month.

Otkritie, owned by state bank VTB, says in a filing with the court that Goldman Sachs cited sanctions introduced against Moscow by the United States and Britain over Ukraine in failing to settle the debt.

Reuters has requested comment from both parties.

A lawyer for Goldman asked on Thursday for the lawsuit to be dismissed on the grounds the Moscow court had no jurisdiction.

The lawyer argued that the case should go to the London Court of International Arbitration and did not agree with Otkritie that there were any obstacles to this, saying “you can get a visa and fly to London for the hearings”.

Otkritie’s lawyer said the Moscow court should have sole jurisdiction and that sanctions essentially prevented Otkritie from accessing justice services in the UK.

The judge adjourned the hearing, to resume on Friday.