More than two years after the sanctions were imposed, nearly 20 months after the district court's ruling, and nine months after oral argument in the appeal, a new judgment is in: on Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed the district court's ruling against Liechtenstein gold trader Rheingold Edelmetall.
According to the ruling obtained by finews, the sanctions against company founder Axel Diegelmann, his son Fritz Diegelmann, and their affiliated companies remain in place.
Three Judges, Two Key Questions
At the helm sat the same three-judge panel finews had already identified at the oral argument on October 1, 2025: Circuit Judge Gregory Katsas, Circuit Judge J. Michelle Childs, and Senior Circuit Judge Harry Edwards. The panel ruled unanimously, with the opinion for the court filed by Judge Katsas.
At its core, the case turned on two questions: does «procuring» «geological materials» — the operative language of the sanctions regulation — cover the purchase of finished gold bars? And does buying such bars from Russian nationals outside Russia amount to operating in the «metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy»?
