The volume of cash in circulation in September decreased by 21.6 billion rubles, RBC reports, citing data from the Central Bank. The reduction, not due to seasonality, occurred for the first time since the spring of 2022.
The Bank of Russia began a systematic tightening of monetary policy in mid-summer, and since then the key rate has risen three times, eventually stopping at 13%, recalls Artem Deev, head of the analytical department at AMarkets.
Banks, quite expectedly, began to raise their rates – both for credit products and savings. Since July, the maximum rate on deposits in the top 10 banks has risen to almost 10%.
“When people realized that no easing of the regulator’s policy was expected in the near future, they naturally carried the money to the banks. Since now with such rates, deposits are more profitable than cash “under the pillow.” In addition, short-term deposits for three months and six months are still the most popular. Therefore, depositors have no fears that they will not have time to withdraw funds in the event of force majeure”, the expert explains.