Russia defaults on foreign debt for first time in more than a century

Russia has defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time since the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution, as sweeping sanctions over its war in Ukraine effectively cut the country off from the global financial system and rendered its assets untouchable to many investors.

Russia faced a deadline of Sunday night to meet a 30-day grace period on interest payments originally due May 27. Some bondholders said they had not received the overdue interest on Monday following the expiry of the key payment deadline.

The Kremlin, which has the money to make payments thanks...