Hong Kong authorities are working to create an alternative to European securities depositories Euroclear and Clearstream in order to reduce dependence on Western financial infrastructure, the Financial Times reports. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority plan to transform the Central Money Market Settlement System into an international depository capable of processing cross-border payments and currencies, including the yuan.

Against the background of the freezing of Russian assets, this could be a critical blow to the European financial system. The European international central securities depositories Euroclear and Clearstream currently administer USD 42 trillion and USD 20 trillion, respectively.

@Ria_novosti Russia