the head of VTB proposed expanding the powers of banks in the fight against drops / Incidents of Krasnoyarsk and the Krasnoyarsk Territory / Newslab.Ru

The head of VTB, Andrei Kostin, proposed legislatively expanding the powers of credit institutions in matters of combating fraudsters, including in relation to drops. He made this statement at the Ural Forum of the Bank of Russia “Cybersecurity in Finance” in Yekaterinburg.

Today, without a decision from law enforcement agencies, banks do not have the right to refuse to issue money to a client upon his request in the office.

“We need to give more powers to banks… For example, we seize money <...>but the issue is their failure to issue cash at bank offices. That is, the drop can come to a bank branch and demand “his money.” I think that what is needed here is a set of fairly tough measures that are aimed specifically at counteracting and giving banks the authority to take emergency measures themselves,” said Andrei Kostin.

The head of VTB added that the first two criminal cases under the new legislation on droppership were opened against droppers who tried to steal funds from VTB clients. Today, criminal cases are underway against a quarter of the drops identified in the bank.

Andrey Kostin noted that 2025 was a turning point in the fight against fraud: “This is the first year when such a consolidated and comprehensive attack on fraud was launched.”

VTB uses a variety of methods to combat drops – nominal account holders controlled by criminals, including monitoring transactions in real time, using analytical tools and interaction with law enforcement agencies and other banks. According to the bank, over the last three years, 380 thousand drops have been identified, almost half of them last year. More than 485 million rubles were returned to clients from drop accounts.

Andrey Kostin also added that he advocates active outreach, especially among young people who may not realize that droppering is a crime. He recalled a quote from the novel “The Master and Margarita”: “Never talk to strangers.” “This simple truth is forgotten, apparently, when they finish school,” Kostin complained, noting that banks need to focus more on explanatory work with clients.