The financial news was dominated by the response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- About $300 billion of the foreign assets of the Central Bank of Russia were frozen
- Some Russian banks were banned from SWIFT
- In the European Union, Russian-owned Amsterdam Trade Bank, RCB and Sberbank Europe closed down
- Meanwhile, European banks are leaving Russia. SocGen sold its stake in Rosbank.
- Crédit Agricole purchased a 9% stake in Banco BPM
- Euro area inflation was 7.5% in March 2022
- Inflation differs strongly between euro countries, e.g. 5.1% in France vs. 11.9% in the Netherlands
- For comparison, March 2022 inflation in Switzerland was only 2.4%