The Ministry of Finance allowed the restoration of currency control measures

Authorities are considering reinstating some currency control measures, Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev said.

“A number of measures have been developed and are being considered aimed at restoring a number of currency control measures. I wouldn’t like to name them now, because the measures are still being discussed, and it is not yet clear which of them will ultimately be implemented,” the deputy minister said, speaking in the State Duma (quote according to RIA Novosti).

According to Moiseev, the measures will be aimed at the outflow of capital, which “is now going through friendly countries.” These measures, as the deputy minister clarified, will be able to curb short-term fluctuations in the exchange rate.

In early September, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that the Ministry of Finance advocates more stringent measures regarding currency control than the Central Bank. According to him, earlier “the ministry was more liberal” regarding control over flows, but now, on the contrary, the Central Bank has taken a “liberal position.”

As Elvira Nabiullina, Chairman of the Bank of Russia, noted, there should remain such currency control measures that mirror the anti-Russian restrictions. Sources of Vedomosti reported that there was a consensus between the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank that tightening foreign exchange controls is an extreme measure that can affect the exchange rate only temporarily, while masking the fundamental reasons for the weakening of the national currency.