U.S. postpones sanctions deadline for three Russian companies

The U.S. Treasury Department said on Friday that it has decided to extend the deadline for implementing sanctions on three Russian companies for two more weeks.

The latest move aims to give Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska, the companies' top shareholder, more time to cut down his stakes.

The Treasury said in a statement that it will extend its sanctions date on EN+ Group, United Company RUSAL, and GAZ Group from Jan. 7 to Jan. 21, 2019. The three Russian companies were designated in April for the connections with Deripaska.

"EN+, RUSAL, and GAZ are proposing substantial corporate governance changes that could potentially result in significant changes in control of these sanctioned entities," said a Treasury spokesperson in the statement.

The sanctions have been delayed several times since its announcement in April.