The Central Bank supported the bill of the Ministry of Finance on branches of foreign banks in Russia

Supported by the Central Bank bill Ministry of Finance on opening branches of foreign banks in Russia. He told the newspaper “News” First Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank Vladimir Chistyukhin.

According to bill, branches will focus on the settlement function – this will simplify banking operations for foreign partners in the face of sanctions. According to experts, this will increase the variety of imported goods being replaced.

In June, the Russian Finance Ministry drafted a bill that would allow foreign friendly banks to open their branches. To this end, according to the amendments, the concept of “branch of a foreign bank” will be introduced into the law on credit institutions.

To operate in Russia, a branch must be accredited. In addition, the bank should not be associated with “unfriendly states and persons.” Branches will be allowed to open accounts, transfer money, carry out collection operations, buy and sell foreign currency. At the same time, they will not be able to open deposits and attract precious metals in them.

The ban on foreign banks to open their branches in Russia was introduced in 2013. The concept of “branch of a foreign bank” was excluded from the banking legislation due to the need to regulate the legal support for the presence of foreign capital after joining the WTO.

Anastasia Larina