Russia’s financial sector is changing as new infrastructure and development projects materialise, overseas funding is provided to friendly nations, and the landscape changes as regards use of currencies into addition to shifts in the way in which capital is used, from QR codes to Crypto all driving new regulatory and Central Bank guidelines. Navigate Russia’s financial landscape. Get analysis on the banking sector, investment mechanisms, currency exchange, and capital markets for businesses operating and investing in Russia.
Sberbank has launched payments using the SberPay QR code service in Turkiye, the bank has stated. Turkiye had previously come under sanctions pressure from the United States over initial plans for its banks to accept Russian MIR cards. Turkiye has become one of the biggest beneficiaries of the domestic Russian tourism market as Russians move […]
The Russian Ministry of Finance, together with the Central Bank and BRICS partners, will prepare a number of initiatives to create an independent international monetary and financial system. The result of this work may be, among other things, the creation of a digital settlement and payment platform “BRICS Bridge”. This was decided following a meeting […]
An on-going debate has been raging in the West about using frozen Russian capital – about US$282 billion, mostly belonging to the Bank of Russia – to generate funds to give to Ukraine. Of this money, about US$6 billion is held in the United States, with the vast majority being held in Europe. Opinions on […]
The Kazakhstan based fintech group Kaspi.kz has entered into a partnership agreement with Alipay+ to launch a payment service in China using Kaspi’s mobile application and QR code, Kaspi has stated in a press release. Kazakhstan’s citizens that live or travel in China will be able to make payments using the QR code from the […]
An estimated 50% of all financial transactions conducted between Russia and China are facilitated by means of intermediaries to avoid exposure by Chinese lenders to the risk of secondary sanctions, Reuters have reported, citing trade consultants and bankers, as well as importers and exporters. In December, US President Joe Biden signed an executive order that […]
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Russia’s Pivot to Asia has been discussing the use of different currencies in different ways since the United States threatened Chinese banks with sanctions. In addition to that issue, Russia also has problems balancing trade with India, which has skyrocketed with Delhi’s increasing purchases of Russia energy. However, bilateral trade isn’t that mature yet and […]
Iran could start accepting Russian MIR debit and credit cards within the next few months, the trade attaché from Tehran’s embassy in Moscow has stated. According to Mohsen Rahimi, work on preparing the necessary technical infrastructure is already underway, although implementing the system will take time. The move comes as Russia and Iran continue to […]
The United States House of Representatives cleared two important pieces of legislation over this weekend, both of which will affect Russia. Firstly, approval was given to extend an additional US$61 billion in loans to Ukraine, while the “Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians (REPO) Act approves the diverting of profits from Russian government capital […]
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised its outlook for Russian GDP growth in 2024 to 3.2% from the 2.6% it was predicting in January, it said in its April World Economic Outlook update, published on Tuesday (April 16). The IMF forecast is above the 2.2% growth the Russian Economic Development Ministry and 1.0%-2.0% that […]
The Ethiopian Ambassador to Russia, Cham Ugala Uriat has said that the BRICS members should work together to strengthen their economies, and create an alternative international monetary system, including an alternative to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He specifically stated that the Shanghai-based New Development Bank (NDB), established by the BRICS states and opened for […]
In further signs that the Europe-Africa dynamics are changing, Mali, which has recently cancelled colonial-era agreements with France, has said that the country is interested in using Russia’s MIR payments system. Badra Alou Coulibaly, the West African nation’s general controller of public services, said that the move will strengthen the existing “significant level” of cooperation […]
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