LONDON, March 21 (Reuters) - Evraz, the Russian steelmaker whose biggest shareholder is Roman Abramovich, said a coupon payment of nearly $19 million on a 2023 bond had not been received by its principal paying agent, adding it believed the issue was linked to sanctions.

The London-listed company said it had sought clarity and confirmation from Britain's Treasury and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office about the matter.

Evraz said it continued to stand on the position that Abramovich, who owns a 28.64% stake, does not have effective control of the company, and it believes that it is neither designated nor sanctioned.

The company said that apart from malfunction of financial infrastructure, there were no reasons for a Potential Event of Default, adding that the issuer had sufficient liquidity to complete the coupon payments.

(Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate Holton)