Following the negative effect of the sanctions on Russian stocks, eToro informed its customers it is delisting Magnit PJSC. Additionally, eToro forced liquidated positions of Magnit, which is one of the largest supermarkets in Russia.
The broker released the following statement on its website: "All of the instruments that we offer for trading and investing on our platform are subject to the conditions in the underlying markets that they are based on. The continued availability of Russian based instruments is dependent on their availability on the world exchanges and any international sanctions.
"In addition, we *may* limit the ability to invest in any instrument on our platform based on our internal risk management considerations. This may include, but is not limited to, closing positions in certain instruments.
"Currently, due to the *severe* lack of liquidity in the underlying markets and, therefore, what is available to eToro from our liquidity providers , it is necessary to remove $MGNTL.L (Magnit PJSC) from our platform. Please read the following carefully:
"Any investment in $MGNTL.L that remains open at the end of business on Friday, March 4, 2022, will be closed at the last tradable rate in the market.
"The value of the position at the time of closure will be returned to the account balance. Due to the impact of the current geopolitical events on markets, we are reviewing the liquidity and our ability to continue offering the following stocks:
$OGZDL.L (Gazprom OAO)
$LKODL.L (Lukoil OAO)
$MNODL.L (MMC Norilsk Nickel OJSC)
$NVTKL.L (NOVATEK OAO)
$ROSNL.L (Rosneft OAO)
$SBERL.L (Sberbank of Russia)
$SVSTL.L (Severstal PAO)
$SGGD.L (Surgutneftegas OAO)
$ATADL.L (Tatneft OAO)
"We will do our best to notify you in advance if the availability of any of the above stocks changes."
source: eToro
eToro's customers received $0.0124 per share. The stock has depreciated over 95% in the past few weeks.
source: London Stock Exchange
eToro Clients Launch a Petition
Investors that are holding Russian American depository receipts (ADRs) / global depository receipts (GDRs) are suggesting the force liquidation in the stock may not be legal.
source: change.org
Traders were displeased with eToro's decision. Furthermore, a petition has been launched against the move, and 757 traders have already signed the petition.
