The Russian ratings agency ACRA said in a statement that the country’s banks imported $5 billion in foreign currency banknotes in December, up from $2.65 billion the previous year, as a precautionary measure in anticipation of increasing demand due to sanctions.
Dollars have typically dominated such imports, which many Russians like to store alongside other currencies as a hedge against any reduction in the value of the rouble or rise in inflation, both of which are probable results of foreign sanctions.
According to Valery Piven, senior director at ACRA, estimates based on technical reports that banks provide to Russia’s central bank each month revealed that they imported $2.1 billion in foreign banknotes in November.
According to Reuters, the US is mulling fresh sanctions against Russia, including banning some of its biggest banks from dealing in dollars and limiting their ability to service dollar-denominated debts.
“The central bank regulates the ratio of currency assets to liabilities held by banks, which (now) does not raise worry. The rise in (forex) imports is more likely due to an increase in demand for hard currency “According to Piven.
The Russian central bank declined to comment, although banks in the nation often import foreign currency in cash to accommodate consumer demand for dollars or euros for abroad travel or in the event of unanticipated situations.
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