It Turns Out That Russian Banks Have Been Preparing To Face Sanctions From The US Since Last Year, This Is The Proof

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MOSCOW - Russia's invasion of China was only officially launched on Thursday, February 24. However, there are indications that the feud, which also involves a group of Western countries such as the United States (US) and its allies, seems to have been detected by the Red Bear Country's banking circles even since 2021.

This estimate can at least be concluded from a report by the Russian rating agency (Analytical Credit Rating Agency (ACRA) which estimates that a number of banks in Russia have imported currency up to US$5 billion, or around Rp. 71.5 trillion, in December 2021. This activity was allegedly an anticipatory step taken by Russian banks to mitigate the risk of a war breaking out, until the emergence of various threats of sanctions that led to the supply of US dollars to the Russian domestic market stalling.

"Based on the monthly technical reports submitted by the banks to the Central Bank of Russia, it shows that they have also imported 2.1 billion US dollars, or around Rp. 30 trillion in November (2021)," said ACRA Senior Director, Valery Piven, as reported by CNN. Business, Tuesday, February 22.

Of all these imported currencies, the US dollar became the most dominant, in line with many Russians who still rely on the US dollar as a means of hedging their assets amid the weakening ruble and the potential for inflationary volatility.

Furthermore, according to Piven, Russian banks were also observed to be diligent in importing foreign currency in the form of tuni, due to the large number of requests from the public who began to worry about unexpected things in the future.

"The ratio of foreign currency assets and liabilities held by banks is regulated by the central bank, and (at present) it is not a cause for concern. The increase in imports (foreign currency) is driven more by the possibility of a surge in demand for cash currency in the community," said Piven.

Not only compared to November, the total value of foreign currency imports at the end of last year also increased significantly compared to the realization of foreign currency imports in the previous year, which was still at US$ 2.65 billion, or around Rp. 37.8 trillion. Based on this information, the Central Bank of Russia has yet to issue an official statement.