When asked whether the sanctions against MOEX will affect the investment climate in Russia, Rogers said: "Sanctions - I have learned over history - sanctions usually do not have much effect except short term."
"When a country has sanctions, of course, many people stay out of that country or do not invest in that country. So this will happen in Russia, it has happened. Many people would not invest in Russia while there are sanctions," he said. "But I also know that sanctions have never lasted forever, anywhere. So I would suspect that after I don't know when but after the war sometime, the sanctions will be lifted, and things will go back to normal in Russia. Not now but after the war."
On June 12, the United States imposed sanctions on the Moscow Exchange, the largest exchange in Russia, as part of a new package of restrictive measures against the country.
On the same day, MOEX said it was halting trading in dollars and euros starting June 13.
Starting June 13, the Bank of Russia began setting the exchange rates for these currencies based on reporting data from credit institutions and the results of interbank conversion transactions in the over-the-counter FX market as of 15:30 Moscow time on business days.
The Russian central bank is able to ensure stability in all markets, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Asset Seizure Undermines US Dollar
The seizure of Russian assets by the collective West is a wrong move but it almost always occurs in a time of war, renowned US investor Jim Rogers told Sputnik.
Earlier in June, the Group of Seven (G7) countries agreed during their summit in Italy to provide at least $50 billion to Ukraine by utilizing revenues generated from the interest on Russia’s $325 billion in assets frozen in the countries of the collective West.
"Unfortunately, that happens in war. It's not just America, Ukraine and Russia right now," Rogers said. "Is it right? Of course, it's not right … for a country just to steal someone else's assets. But it nearly always happens in war."
Rogers said he does not approve of the seizure and does not think it should happen, but reiterated that governments always take their enemies’ assets in war.
When asked whether the decision to seize Russian assets will undermine the other nations’ trust in the United States, Rogers said, "Many people see what's happening with the US dollar, they see that the US is seizing assets, that other people are seizing assets, so many people are now trying to find something else to use besides the US dollar."
Rogers noted that it is widely known that the United States is the largest debtor nation in history and most people are trying to find another currency to use besides the US dollar.
"I want to repeat the United States is the largest debtor nation in the history of the world and that debt is going higher every day. Everybody knows that and everybody's trying to find something else," Rogers added.
After the start of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, the European Union and the G7 nations froze almost half of Russia's foreign currency reserves, amounting to $325 billion. Russia has said that any attempt to confiscate its assets amounts to theft and is a violation of international law.
Jim Rogers added that he still has shares in the Moscow Stock Exchange, Aeroflot and some other leading Russian companies and hopes that trading will resume once the conflict is over.
The famed investor, now the chairman of Rogers Holdings and Beeland Interests, is the author of several books including "Investment Biker," "Adventure Capitalist," and "Street Smarts." In addition, Rogers has the Guinness World Record for most countries visited in a continuous journey by car - an adventure he undertook from 1999-2002.
In 1973, Rogers and George Soros co-founded the world-renowned Quantum Fund, which by 1980 was up 4,200% at a time when the US was in a bear market. Time Magazine in 1994 dubbed Rogers the "Indiana Jones of finance" for realizing huge profits on foreign stocks that were neglected by Wall Street.