russia has defaulted on foreign debt, CNN reports
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russia has defaulted on its foreign debt because it has offered bondholders payments in rubles rather than dollars.
CNN reports with reference to the S&P credit rating agency.
russia has tried to pay in rubles for two dollar-denominated bonds maturing on April 4, according to an S&P statement released on Friday.
The agency said it was tantamount to a "selective default" as investors are unlikely to be able to convert rubles into "dollars, initially due."
According to S&P, a selective default is declared when an entity defaults on a specific obligation but not on all of its debt.
The same information was confirmed by the Biden administration with reference to Standard & Poor's.
moscow has a 30-day grace period from April 4 to pay capital and interest, but S&P has said it does not expect moscow to convert them into dollars, given Western sanctions that undermine its "willingness and technical ability to meet its obligations."
A complete currency default will be the first in russia in more than a century when Lenin renounced bonds issued by the tsarist government.
