As of December 1, 2023, the balance volume in dollar correspondent accounts of Russian banks abroad reached its highest level since October of the previous year. The newspaper reports this “Kommersant”.
The corresponding figure continued to rise for five consecutive months, according to the publication. This is evidenced by data from the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, as stated in the material.
During the specified period, correspondent account balances in foreign banks increased by 3.2 billion dollars and the total amount reached 17.4 billion dollars. Such an indicator was last recorded at the beginning of October 2022.
At the same time, balances in euro, yuan and some other currencies also decreased slightly in November 2023. In this way, the total balance in foreign exchange correspondent accounts of Russian banks decreased to 36.9 billion dollars.
Dollar deposits of Russian banks fell to 7.4 billion dollars between September and November last year. At the same time, there were $11.3 billion in deposit accounts of Russian banks in 2022.
“The dynamics of funds in accounts in non-resident banks is largely determined by various factors based on the state of the balance of payments,” the Central Bank of the Russian Federation said.
Representatives of the financial regulator added that the structure of funds in accounts by currency depends on the nature of payments for the export and import of goods. It is also affected by the dynamics of foreign currency denominated assets and liabilities of credit institutions.
As the Central Bank of Russia noted, in recent months there has been a recovery in the country’s foreign exchange earnings and, in this context, an increase in the trade balance. This led to an increase in the funds held by banks in foreign currency.
According to Valery Piven, head of the ACRA rating group of financial institutions, fluctuations in balances in correspondent accounts of Russian banks in general occur smoothly and do not violate the limits of the intra-year range. The expert explained that payments in the global market are now largely dollarized. In this context, it is possible to dispense with American currency in domestic transactions, but not in foreign transactions.
Russians before Recommended Don’t keep your savings in US dollars.