The Ministry of Economic Development did not support the Ministry of Justice’s initiative to ban the activities in Russia of collection agencies, banks and microfinance organizations (MFOs) with connections to unfriendly countries. This was reported by RBC, citing the ministry’s response to the draft presidential decree.
As can be seen from the Ministry of Economy’s response to the relevant draft Presidential decree developed by the Ministry of Justice, such a ban has “no obvious impact” on the protection of the rights of indebted citizens. The document also notes that the Russian Federation already has restrictions on the withdrawal of financial resources abroad from unfriendly countries for non-residents.
“The impact of the proposed regulation on the level of legal protection of citizens during debt collection is not clear,” the Ministry of Economy emphasized in its review.
In January, the Ministry of Justice developed a draft decree prohibiting any actions aimed at the collection and return of citizens’ overdue debts for collection agencies, banks and microfinance organizations with connections in countries that have imposed sanctions against the Russian Federation. The document will cover creditors with significant foreign participation in capital and management, including those that changed “unfriendly” jurisdiction after March 1, 2022.
The Ministry of Justice motivated the initiative by the need to protect Russian interests and reduce social tensions. In its response, the Ministry of Economy stated that citizens’ claims against debt collectors are currently regulated by the law “On the protection of the rights and legitimate interests of individuals when carrying out activities aimed at repayment of overdue debts.” Violation of this will result in the company being banned from operating.
The Ministry of Economic Development noted that the final decision on the decree could be made after reaching agreement with other relevant departments.
For the first time in Russia at the beginning of February started Case of violations in the repayment of debt by collectors.
Previously Russian collectors there is The right to use robots in debt collection.