The key interest rate in Russia currently stands at 14.25%. There have been long-standing requests from major businesses for a more significant reduction, according to The Moscow Times.
During the annual shareholders’ meeting on June 30, Herman Gref, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Sberbank, stated that the economy cannot sustain itself under the current interest rate, as reported by RBC.
He noted, “The real rates we have are about 10%, which means the central bank’s key rate minus current inflation. A 10% rate could be applied in the short term to cool down the economy,” Gref explained.
At a financial congress, he suggested to Nabiullina a temporary reduction of the rate for experimental purposes.
However, the Central Bank head firmly rejected this proposal, arguing that such a move would lead to a surge in inflation, and she was not willing to conduct “experiments on the country.”
Context
- In July 2025, Bloomberg reported that the Russian economy, which had shown resilience despite international sanctions, was revealing increasing cracks. However, illegitimate President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to back down from military actions in Ukraine, dismissing rumors of economic decline as exaggerated. Sources in Ukraine’s foreign ministry claimed that Putin’s inner circle is afraid to reveal the true state of the economy.
- The Moscow Times reported on June 29, 2026, that the financial stress index of the Russian economy reached a record high since 2022, hitting 2.47 points.
