The Bank of Russia has advised market participants to exercise caution when disseminating information concerning investors' rights and legitimate interests. The bank emphasized that communications to customers should be comprehensive and clearly worded to prevent any incorrect or ambiguous interpretations.
Russians brought over 31 million coins to banks during Coin Week, which took place from May 20 to June 2. This figure is almost 1.5 times more than last year. In total, people put ₽135 million back into circulation, exchanging coins for banknotes or depositing them in their bank accounts.
Some major Russian banks have reported a significant increase in credit concentration on corporate borrowers over recent years. However, based on international and Russian experience, even large companies can become insolvent. The potential default of such borrowers may cause banks to lose their financial stability and pose risks to the financial system as a whole. Therefore, the Bank of Russia believes it is important to regulate concentration risks.
At its meeting on 27 June 2024, the National Financial Board (NFB) considered the Bank of Russia Annual Report for 2023, information from the Bank of Russia Board of Directors on key issues of the regulator’s activities in Q1 2024, as well as the report of Limited Liability Company Fund of Banking Sector Consolidation Asset Management Company for 2023.
The Bank of Russia will increase risk-weight add-ons for unsecured consumer loans starting September 1, 2024. This measure aims to curb the rise in household debt and strengthen banks' macroprudential capital buffers.
The Bank of Russia has identified instances of market manipulation in on-exchange trading at Moscow Exchange and PJSC SPB Exchange involving 19 issues of corporate high-yield bonds over the period from December 12, 2018, to April 13, 2023. The issuance of these bonds was organized by Limited Liability Company UniService Capital (LLC USC).
The total cost of credit (TCC) under consumer loan and microloan agreements signed or amended in the third quarter of 2024 may not exceed the market averages calculated by the Bank of Russia for respective loan categories by more than one-third. The market averages of the TCC were published on the regulator’s website in May.
The loan portfolio of microfinance organizations expanded by 7% over the first quarter of 2024 amid high consumer demand. Predominantly medium-term loans were issued. Payday loans, which are traditionally the most expensive ones, accounted for 32% of the total amount of loans granted for several quarters. This is the lowest amount since 2017.
Since January 9, 2024, the Bank of Russia has adhered to a previously announced procedure for conducting transactions in the domestic foreign exchange (FX) market related to replenishing and using the funds of the National Wealth Fund (NWF). This includes all transactions carried out with such funds in 2023. Consequently, the Bank of Russia reports the amounts of transactions performed in the domestic FX market from July 1 to December 28, 2024.
The June 2024 results of the monitoring of maximum interest rates on deposits in Russian rubles by the top ten credit institutions attracting the largest amount of household deposits are as follows:
According to InFOM’s survey, one-year inflation expectations of households edged up to 11.9% in June 2024 from 11.7% in the previous month. The increase was driven by growing expectations among surveyed respondents with savings. Expectations of respondents without savings edged down but were still around the level of autumn 2023.
Authorised representatives of the Bank of Russia, acting in compliance with Article 76 of Federal Law No. 86-FZ ‘On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia)’, dated 10 July 2002, were assigned to 88 credit institutions.
The Bank of Russia, in coordination with Public Joint Stock Company ‘Leasing company Europlan’ (PJSC LC Europlan), has established facts of market manipulation in transactions involving the Issuer’s bonds in on-exchange trading.
The Bank of Russia has proposed a discussion on two models regarding the operation of exchanges and brokers: maintaining functional differentiation or allowing a combination of functions. The potential consequences, risks, and future regulatory developments are outlined in the Bank of Russia's consultation paper titled "Universalisation or Specialisation? Stock Market Participants’ Roles."
The Russian economy has experienced four major crises over the past decades. To determine which anti-crisis decisions the Bank of Russia made, whether they were efficient, and what lessons each crisis taught, one can refer to the Bank of Russia’s analytical paper.
The Bank of Russia has launched a new online resource, providing access to both modern books and periodicals relevant to everyday work, as well as unique antique books detailing the history of financial science, economics, and banking in Russia and worldwide.
Elvira Nabiullina, the Governor of the Bank of Russia, addressed the 10th All-Russian Congress of Financial Education Volunteers on June 21, 2024. She emphasized the significance of social initiatives in financial education and underscored the importance of trust in information sources.
Annual inflation across Russia increased by 0.46 percentage points compared to April, reaching 8.3%. Price growth accelerated in 71 Russian regions. The North Caucasian Federal District saw the most significant acceleration, while inflation slightly slowed down in the Urals.